Strictly Come Dancing star Paul Merson has said he had a dancefloor “party piece” when he used to drink.
The former Arsenal and England ace has been open about his past troubles with addiction. Merse, 56, has battled a string of habits including gambling, drugs and booze – and said it started in a bid to boost his confidence as a shy young footballer.
He explained: “A couple of drinks brought me out of myself. It completely changed me. I would talk to anybody.
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“Drink was like boarding a rocket for me, a ticket to a different world. I could be the person who made everyone laugh. If I drank no one would ever know how I was feeling inside.
(Image: Getty Images)
“By the time I was a first-team regular and we would go on tour, one of my party pieces was to run across nightclubs and slide across the dancefloor on my knees, knocking everybody flying out of the way.
“I would do all kinds of stupid things, just to impress people who were as pissed as I was but had more sense. When you’re shy, you’re insecure and when you do find friends, a worrier will do anything to stay onside.”
The Soccer Saturday pundit, who won 21 caps for his country, lifted the lid on his struggles as an addict in his recent book Hooked.
He said: “People at Alcoholics Anonymous speak about drink in different ways.
“I’ve heard some say, ‘I loved it, loved the very taste of it.’
“I never did. I didn’t go into a pub, take the first sip of a pint and go, like some regulars, ‘Aaaaaaah! That’s lovely.’
“I never drank because I liked it. I drank for the effect. Anxiety ate away at me.
“Looking back, I can’t think specifically what it was that was making me like that because it wasn’t one thing.
“I was worried about everything all the time. My head was constantly churning with thoughts and doubts.
“Away from football I was very quiet, my personality was buried within myself. In social situations, I wouldn’t say boo to a goose.”
“Later, I wouldn’t be able to control it. I might think I’ll only have a couple the night before a game but when you’re an alcoholic, you’re not having a couple.
“All my addictions were not about trying to find myself. I wanted to lose myself.”
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