Mothers turn back on drinking culture and join sober groups

Brisbane mother Peta Rickard used to drink three bottles of champagne a night, but is now part of a growing sobriety movement.

The boozy mum culture is starting to wear thin, with women shunning cork-popping social circles in favour of a healthier life.

The Queensland Network of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies reports that “sober curiosity” is beginning to take hold.

Data released last month by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows that the proportion of Queenslanders aged 30 to 39 who drank daily halved from 2001-19.

The proportion who drank weekly dropped from 42 per cent to 38 per cent in the same period.

The network’s chief executive Rebecca Lang said: “We are seeing the positive side of social media, where sober Facebook pages are popping up offering mums the chance to chat and enjoy social interaction without the need to consume alcohol at the same time.

Mother Peta Rickard, 45, of Brisbane’s Fitzgibbon, previously drank up to 18 glasses of champagne a day. Picture: Liam Kidston

“Women are finding a new kind of community.”

“I wine because my kids whine” and “Mummy’s special juice” are just some of the memes that have flooded social media in recent years, promoting the drinking culture and suggesting that consuming wine is the only way to cope with raising kids.

“I was one of the mums that were posting those memes,” Peta Rickard told The Courier-Mail.

“I’d put up a picture of a glass of wine and say, ‘I deserve this.’ ”

The Brisbane mother of two at her worst was drinking three bottles of champagne at night to cope with losing her parents, raising children and holding down a job.

“I’d wake up in an awful state, but had to get the kids to school and get on with my day,” she said.

“I was lost in the habit and could see no way out.

“I’m speaking out to help other mums. There is so much pressure on mothers to hold everything together.

“There is also the idea that if you stop drinking that you will miss out on social interaction.

“You feel trapped.”

Ms Rickard booked herself into a private clinic and has been sober for eight months.

“I’m not an alcoholic but ended up alcohol-dependent,” she said.

“I have joined the non-drinking social group Untoxicated and have had tremendous support.”

Brisbane woman Faye Lawrence started the sober group following her own battle to cut back on drinking while raising kids.

“I had always been a boozer, and at my worst I too was drinking three bottles of wine a night,” she said.

“I was always the life and soul of the party, and worried I would have no social circle if I stopped drinking.

“But you can be sober and have fun and you will feel a whole lot better when you wake up in the morning.”