A former party animal mum-of-three has swapped booze for bodybuilding and says she couldn't be happier.
Personal trainer Natalie Whitehead used to down two bottles of wine a night and more on the weekend, while smoking 20 cigarettes a day before falling pregnant with her first child Hope, who is now nine.
Now, the 36-year-old, who previously dabbled in drugs as a way to cope with her depression, has ditched the drink and is now thriving in her sport.
Natalie, from Worthing, West Sussex, said: "As a teenager, I struggled at school and couldn't read or write as I have dyslexia.
"I went down a drink and drugs route as I frequently took recreational drugs on the weekend along with alcohol until I was 26.
"I was depressed and used alcohol as a coping mechanism.
"But then one day I woke up and decided to change, I realised the life I was living wasn't sustainable."
She previously feared that she would amount to nothing because of her dyslexia - but this didn't stop her from enrolling in a health and fitness course at her local college.
After placing second in a UK Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation competition, she caught the exercise bug and her career has went from strength to strength since.
Natalie, who is the proud gym owner of Females Physique gym, which is set to open later this year in Little Hampton, West Sussex added: "I have a very addictive personality.
"So I swapped drinking for exercising and before I knew it, I was hooked.
"I decided to do a body building competition and came second which then led to me becoming a personal trainer.
"I wanted to progress and help others with addictions and mums."
She continued: "I found my calling in life and it is to motivate and help others who want to better their circumstances.
"It is so easy for people to slip into alcoholism by drinking a bottle of wine a night to take the edge off.
"But it's not the right thing to do so now I strive to help others feel as good as I do."
Looking back, Natalie admits her journey has been tough but insists she is now in a 'happy place'.
She added: "It was very lonely coming off alcohol as I thought I had lots of friends but without alcohol I had none.
"I had to start again, make new friends and new hobbies.
"I also wouldn't be the woman I am today without my amazing friends who have supported me."
As the proud mum of Hope, nine, Sky, eight, and seven-month old Callen, who she describes as her saviour, she adds that "they are the reason for me to keep on pushing on and on".
A decade on from some of her darkest days, Natalie hopes her new gym will be a happy place for women to come along and have a break.
She said: "It will be a safe space for women to workout, have a coffee and a moan.
"I am signing the deeds in three to four weeks then transforming the old post office into a gym.
"I want to give something back and let others know you can do it."
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