ALKHUZAMA Zaini downed a bottle of vodka a day for ‘liquid courage’ to keep crippling nerves at bay while she was a student.
The habit started off with an occasional drink to cope with social outings when she started at Arizona State University.
Alkhuzama Zaini, 24, struggled with alcohol addiction for three yearsCredit: SWNS
She turned to drink for liquid courage when she transferred universityCredit: SWNS
But soon Alkhuzama was having vodka every day, sometimes a whole bottleCredit: SWNS
But Alkhuzama, who suffers from anxiety, soon found she was “relying on [alcohol] everyday” – at her worst drinking a $15 bottle of vodka a day.
Her three year caused her to rot and her to fall out in clumps.
Alkhuzama said: “Addiction creeps in quietly, you think you have found a shortcut to making life easier.
“But eventually, you begin waking up filled with regret and drinking again just to forget the night before.”
The turning point came when she went home to Boston for holidays in August 2025. Her dad, Raafat Zaini, 56, gave her an ultimatum after finding her drunk in a bar at 9pm.
Alkhuzama has now been sober for five months, taking breathalyser tests and at home pee tests to keep her off the booze.
The student of environmental design currently based in Harrisonburg, Virginia, said: “I used to drink 750ml of the cheapest vodka I could find, which is $15 a bottle.
“My . I grew a lot of facial hair in that time and my , if they came, were the most painful thing ever.
“My teeth were literally rotting, my hair was falling out loads, and I gained so much weight.
“Even though I was hardly eating because I was full of the calories in the vodka, I was gaining weight so fast.
“My body and face were swollen, and I was losing so many brain cells that speaking felt like a chore.
“When my dad picked me up it was the first time he had seen me drunk and that was my last crash out.
“He gave me two options – go to rehab, or do my degree from their home and give up alcohol completely.
“I didn’t want to go to , so I chose to go cold turkey and stay with them.”
Where to get help if you think you have a drinking problem
If you think you might have a problem with booze, then you may need to seek help.
This might be the case if you often feel the need to have a drink or if you get into trouble because of your drinking.
If other people have warned you about your drink and it’s causing you problems, then a good place to start is your GP.
There are other places you can go to get help:
- Drinkline: Call 0300 123 1110 (weekdays 9am to 8pm, weekends 11am to 4pm).
- AA – a free self help group that follows the 12 step programme
- Al-Anon Family Groups – a group for friends and family members impacted by drinking
- We Are With You – for individuals, families and communities struggling – call 0808 8010 750 – if you’re over 50 and worried about booze
- Adfam – local support groups and message boards
- National Association for Children of Alcoholics (Nacoa) – call 0800 358 3456
- SMART Recovery – to help people discover if they have a problem
It can be dangerous to go cold turkey without medical supervision as you can experience withdrawal symptoms if your body is dependent on alcohol.
Make sure you have the proper support to stop drinking.
Vicious cycle
Alkhuzama’s struggle began three and a half years ago when she transferred from the University of New Hampshire to Arizona State University.
She said: “I was so excited to move because I wanted warm and they had my program.
“The move felt like a dream at first, but it also meant starting completely over, far away from family and friends.
“Living with an anxiety disorder, I think I just looked for ways to cope and socialize in an unfamiliar environment, and that for me was drinking.”
She lived in an apartment building with a pool where students often gathered.
She said: “I was scared to go down on my own, so I used alcohol as liquid courage.
“At first, it worked, and that year in Arizona was one of the best years of my life.
“But over time, I found that alcohol stopped being occasional and became something I was relying on for everyday situations.
“It started as a routine, then became a cycle.”
Alkhuzama suffered with hair loss due to alcoholismCredit: SWNS
Her parents staged an intervention when she went back home for summer holidaysCredit: SWNS
In the last year of her addiction, her drinking escalated into constant use.
And it even led her to get lip filler while blackout drunk – something she regretted sober.
Alkhuzama said: “There wasn’t a moment I wanted to be sober. My mental , confidence, and motivation for school declined.
“I failed three classes, and medical tests showed I had elevated liver levels.
“My parents saw and started to become really concerned about me.”
When her family saw her drunk in August 2025, they encouraged her to stay home from university to overcome her addiction.
Alkhuzama said: “That was the first time my dad ever saw me drunk.”
She said her dad advised she choose between immediate rehab or intensive therapy and sobriety.
“When I returned home, my body reacted badly to suddenly stopping drinking alcohol,” the student said.
“There was no way I would have stayed sober at university in Arizona, the culture is completely different.
“I needed someone to make me stop because I didn’t know how to do it myself. I didn’t want to go to rehab.”
‘Sobriety is a freedom’
She’s been sober since August 8, 2025, and kept the booze at bay.
She kept herself accountable with breathalyser tests and at home pee tests if she wanted to go out alone and she had her money limited so she wouldn’t buy alcohol.
Alkhuzama said: “It builds over time as you do the work and start proving to yourself that you can do hard things.
“Sobriety is a freedom, I felt trapped in my own life for years. Now I feel like I can do anything, I am less sluggish, and more sharp minded.
“I finally feel like a real person again and a contributing member of society.
“Alcoholism is a disease, and our brains are chemically wired differently.
“Sobriety is an ongoing challenge for anyone, and relapse is always a risk. If I had one drink right now, I wouldn’t be able to stop; I’d go on a bender.”
She now shares her sobriety journey on @Alkhuzamazaini.
She said: “If you are thinking of going sober, please do, you’re not going to be trapped in your own prison anymore, you’re going to be free.
“That’s what I would have said to myself in the week that I was trying to stay sober for the first time.”
Alkhuzama is sharing her story to encourage others to get soberCredit: SWNS
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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