In a brave and candid interview, the Woman’s Day’s columnist tells Patrice Fidgeon of her alcohol hell and how she’s fighting back.
As falls from grace go, they don’t come much more spectacular than comedian Fiona O’Loughlin‘s drunken collapse during a live comedy show in Brisbane just days before she was set to make her debut as a celebrity contestant on Dancing With The Stars.
Rushed to hospital after she fell off a couch, crawled across the floor and slurred her words on stage, the mother of five and 2009 Northern Territory Australian of the Year winner last week said the words she’s been avoiding for at least five years: “I am an alcoholic”.
Now, as she battles towards rehabilitation, Fiona, 45, reveals to Woman’s Day the hell she has been through.
“It was a monster lying dormant for years. There has been a lot of denial – for a long time,” says Fiona.
“I tried to kid myself I was managing it, but I was a train crash about to happen.”
Fiona says she can’t even remember how much she drank that fateful night.
“I have virtually no recall of the show in Brisbane,” she says. “All I know is I woke up in hospital with patches all over my chest as doctors monitored my heart. After that, I knew I had no choice but to come out and admit I was an alcoholic.”
And while she’s desperately embarrassed and feels greatly ashamed, Fiona is determined to turn her life around.
“I feel very, very lucky that I had this hugely public wake-up call. Otherwise, I hate to think how I could’ve ended up.”
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