I started drinking when I was 14. When I finally got sober, I lost 100 pounds and saved over $55,000.

"I don't blame anyone else for my alcoholism - it was all on me - but I grew up in a family where beer, wine, and liquor were part of the culture. I'm half Lebanese, and every holiday and other social occasion centered on eating and drinking. At 14, my grandfather handed me a vodka and tonic and said, 'This is the way to drink responsibly, surrounded by your family in the safety of home.'"

"But the bad habits really set in after I sold the business and started working with my husband, Drake, 43, at his gas-and-oil brokerage. I was in charge of the books and dealt with the ongoing financial stress by reaching for the bottle. It got to the point where I was getting through a large bottle of vodka every few days. I'd hide the evidence in the pantry because I didn't want Drake to see how often it was happening."

"I'd use any excuse to drink, whether it was to celebrate the good times or commiserate with myself when something went wrong. The tell-tale signs were there. I was overweight from all the wasted calories and my habit of eating more when drinking."

Emily Susman, a 42-year-old chef and cookbook author from Tulsa, Oklahoma, struggled with alcohol addiction rooted in her upbringing where drinking was culturally normalized. Growing up in a Lebanese family and later joining a sorority in college, alcohol became central to her social life. After establishing a successful restaurant business and transitioning to work at her husband's gas-and-oil brokerage, she used drinking to cope with financial stress, consuming large bottles of vodka every few days while hiding evidence. A wake-up call in January 2021 prompted her to quit drinking entirely. Since then, she has lost 100 pounds and saved $55,500 by eliminating alcohol purchases over five years.

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