Women and alcoholism: author describes global epidemic

Journalist and author Ann Dowsett Johnston is now a member of the sisterhood of sobriety, but for years she wrestled with a dependence on alcohol.

I grew up with an alcoholic mother who was heavily cross-addicted to Valium I was very conscious of not getting into trouble, and deluded myself for a long time, not realizing how progressive it was.

Her fondness for PinotGrigio graduated from a social drink to private binges. There were black outs, and public outbursts.

In the winter of 2008 she went into rehab and got sober.

She began to rebuild her life, but as she was sitting in recovery meetings in church basements she noticed a significant number of women at those meetings women of all ages and from all walks of life.

Alcoholism is considered largely a male problem, so Dowsett Johnston, a journalist by profession, began to look into the relationship between gender and alcohol.

She found that some researchers believe there is a global epidemic in womens drinking, and that alcohol producers are creating products specifically aimed at women.

We are looking at a very savvy marketing industry looking at an entire gender and hoping to woo them, and theyve done a very good job, she said.

Shame, stigma and silence inhibit women from sharing their stories of addiction, especially in a culture that romanticizes its relationship with the bottle.

In 2011, Dowsett Johnston won an Atkinson Fellowship and wrote a groundbreaking 14-part newspaper series on women and alcohol. But she hadnt gone public with her own story. Until now.

In a candid interview, she talks to The Sunday Editions Michael Enright about her new book, Drink, the Intimate Relationship Between Women and Alcohol. She discusses her personal journey away from drinking, and how a growing number of women face this addiction. To listen to the interview, click the audio icon at the top of this page or on The Sunday Editions website.