Meet the GAME CHANGERS

‘HOW I LEARNED TO TAME MY ANXIETY’

EMILY WEIR, 31

A few years ago, Brisbane-born actress Emily Weir appeared to have it all going on. She’d just landed her dream role as Mackenzie Booth on Home and Away, a show she and her family had watched since childhood.

But behind the scenes, the star tells WHO, she was battling crippling anxiety which had led to an alcohol addiction. “I was self-medicating with red wine, but I managed to hide it all really well,” she says frankly.

Even as her career was flying, her personal life was crumbling. It was after one messy night too many that Weir says she woke up and had an epiphany.

“I knew I had to stop drinking. It wasn’t serving me well and I knew I had to finally address why I was drinking,” the now-sober and content star says.

It’s an ongoing personal journey that has involved AA meetings and regular sessions with a counsellor to curb her addiction and learn to manage her anxiety. And while Weir says that she’s still a work in progress, she’s passionate about speaking up about these issues. “The more you shine a light on anxiety and addiction, the less power it has,” she says. “It’s definitely not easy, but by speaking out, I hope anyone else who’s struggling realises that these issues can and do affect anyone. I’m passionate about shining that light