How I coped with stress in the past, versus how I cope nowadays… The picture in the middle is from 2009, although it’s not special, I have so many just like that one, they all feature wine..I set off on a run to clear my frazzled mind the other day and it got me thinking about how I cope now, and I realised I definitely get more out of life nowadays! In many of my old photos, I always had a glass of wine and although I often had a smile on my face, it was frequently covering up how I felt inside. At the time, I thought wine helped wash those worries away. It didn’t, it just made them worse. Now, I’m still emotional at times; yes I get anxious, yes, I over worry, but I don’t try to push those parts of myself away, instead, I’ve found things that work for me. So yes, the person in the middle picture is me, but I prefer the person I am now, the one who deals with things rather than burying my head in the sand. Running, wild swimming and generally being outdoors give me a natural high and make me feel so much better than drinking ever did!