Have YOU got a story? Email tips@dailymail.co.uk Katie Hind reveals what Callum Turner's mum told her before his and Dua Lipa's Palermo wedding exclusively in the Spotlight newsletter on Tuesday See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy AMELIA WYNNE, SHOWBUSINESS REPORTER Published: 19:35 BST, 1 June 2026 | Updated: 19:36 BST, 1 June 2026
Ulrika Jonsson has opened up about how going sober felt like a 'spiritual awakening'. The presenter, 58, said she went from 'not wanting to live anymore to trying to squeeze every moment out of life' after giving up booze.The star is about to mark two years of sobriety after hitting rock bottom and wishing 'the drink would take her' and has opened up about her progress on the In Recovery Ark House Rehab podcast.She said: 'I had a spiritual awakening - really it's just like I was waiting for this my whole life [going sober].'I felt safe after my first meeting. I felt like I belonged there after my first in person meeting. There is so much in the programme that should be taught in schools. I pass on bits to my kids. 'It completely changed me. It has the ability to change you as a person and it felt like I was waiting for this my whole life. Life will throw stuff at me still but now I deal with it in a completely different way. Ulrika Jonsson has opened up about how going sober felt like a 'spiritual awakening' as she spoke about her rock bottom amid alcoholism The presenter, 58, said she went from 'not wanting to live anymore to trying to squeeze every moment out of life' after giving up booze'I went from not wanting to live to now wanting to squeeze every moment out of my life. I missed having some kind of faith. The programme was spiritual for me.'She also opened up on how things went downhill so fast, explaining: 'The public saw someone in control of their life and being fun. There was this battle between the public me and private me. 'My drinking only really got bad in the two years up to my sobriety. I used it as a mood alterer. It eased the bridge from public me to private me. It was fun in lockdown and I was a bit hedonistic. 'But then it pulled the rug from under me and I knew I shouldn't have been doing it. I was shocked how quickly it deteriorated. I never thought that would be me. I quite enjoyed the white lies as I got to create a different world that facilitated the drinking. 'Deep inside I was hoping the drink would take me. That's the only way I can articulate it.'I was hoping that one day it would just be so bad that I wouldn't wake up.'Back in January Ulrika revealed the harrowing phone call she got when her drinking spiralled out of control. Speaking in an emotional chat she recalled a tough conversation she had with her best friend at the peak of her alcohol struggles. The star is about to mark two years of sobriety after hitting rock bottom and wishing 'the drink would take her' (seen in 1989) She said: 'I had a spiritual awakening - really it's just like I was waiting for this my whole life [going sober]'She said that although the conversation was 'so shaming' it was the moment that she knew something needed to change. Joining Spencer Matthews on his podcast UNTAPPED, she began: 'It was awful. My best friend phoned me on a Saturday morning. 'She said, 'I need to speak to you because I spoke to you at 4 o'clock yesterday afternoon and I could understand a f***ing word you said. You have a problem and I can't help you.''I was crying my eyes out because there was no way of avoiding it. She said, 'This is coming from a place of love, but you need help.''Ulrika continued: 'I still didn't stop drinking, I had to drink on that conversation because that was so shaming. It was awful. 'I knew that she knew that I had a problem too. And I was said, 'I can't do this anymore.'' The TV presenter credits the shocking admission from June 2024 for saving her life and rescuing her from the depths of addiction.
