Derry’s Caitlin is raising awareness and reducing stigma with ‘Diary of a Sober Lady’

Caitlin Graydon, 24, from Galliagh, set up her Youtube channel as well as her Instagram page ‘Diary of A Sober Lady’ to raise awareness and reduce stigma.

She also wanted to’ build a community for people to come and watch fun videos and more serious videos where they can be both entertained and experience a sense of solidarity.’

The pages have been a huge hit, with Caitlin, who lives with her husband Gary and two dogs, Zack and Cody, gaining more followers every day.

She told the Journal how she initially set up her Instagram page as a place where she could share my experiences as a recovering alcoholic. “It is used as a tool where I can share photos and quotes that motivate me and keep me going and where other people struggling with substance dependency can also find some inspiration.”

While she ‘tossed about the idea’ of starting a YouTube channel for many years she ‘was always a little anxious’ of what people would say about her.

However, the past few months gave her a different sense of perspective. “In 2020, a lot has happened in the world and it has really made me (and I think everyone) realise that we have to do what makes us happy and be kind to everyone.”

She continued: “I set up my channel for a few different reasons. Firstly I really want somewhere I can share my life and my memories so that I can look back on these in the future. I also want to build a community for people to come and watch fun videos and more serious videos where they can be both entertained and experience a sense of solidarity. I am very open about my mental health and issues with alcohol because I want people to know they are not alone!

“Here in Derry we have a high rate of depression and suicide, with a lot of cases being worsened due to alcohol and drugs. I really want to use both my instagram and youtube spread awareness and reduce stigma.”

Caitlin not only speaks about mental health and sobriety, she also shares fashion hauls, make up tips, music and singing.

Caitlin is very honest in her videos and post and told how, while the journey through sobriety can ‘still be difficult’ sharing her story is not.

“ It took me a long time to come to terms with the fact that I had a problem. I went through all the emotions of shame anger, regret, loneliness etc..at one stage I really struggled to speak about the past and situations that occurred because of my heavy drinking.

“ However, I have got this far and I am not ashamed anymore. I am very proud of my journey and I don’t shy away from sharing it. I am now aiming to take a bad situation and turn it into something good. People may judge me but I’m not sharing this story for them. I am sharing it for the people who need to hear it.”

And many do need to hear it, with Caitlin’s posts and journey inspiring many others to share their own.

“The feedback has been very positive so far, which is amazing. I have had many people send me private messages thanking me for my videos and telling me their own stories and struggles with mental health and alcohol and drug addiction. I have been able to act as a listening ear for those people, provide them with any knowledge I have learnt from my own journey and point them in the right direction to someone who can help.

“I have had plus size ladies thank me for my realistic yet positive approach to fashion, self love and health. I have actually started to attend online AA meetings myself after being approached by a viewer of my videos, which has been a great help.”

Going forward, Caitin would like to continue creating videos of fashion hauls, makeup videos, singing covers and challenges.

She added how she would also like ‘to begin to focus more so on the mental health and sobriety videos.’

“ I feel that now I have built up a little community I can start to really get going with the more thought provoking and beneficial videos.

I am planning on distributing a mental health survey soon and relaying my findings in a video as a way of increasing awareness of the mental health issues in Derry.

“I have also thought about starting a weekly zoom session for Derry people to have a place to talk about their week and any problems they have going on. They can keep their name anonymous and turn off their camera. This would be a listening aid only and there would be no advice given other than the contact information of helping agencies throughout the city.

I am very excited to see what is to come for my channel in the future.”

You can view Caitlin’s Youtube channel on https;//youtube.com/user/catie3100