My 50-year-old face: Why sobriety is the secret to my midlife skin - and I've photographed every step

In my 28 years as a beauty editor, I’ve been commissioned to test every "miracle" cream designed to lift, plump and brighten skin. My bathroom has seen it all: £200 serums, high-tech LED masks and anti-ageing creams that promise everything but to wash your kitchen sink.

And, yes, thanks to being at the forefront of all of these new skincare innovations and a simple routine that doesn’t involve Botox or injectables, my skin is in pretty good shape. But almost two years ago, just after my 48th birthday, I decided to do the best thing that I have ever done for it – and that’s ditch the booze.

It was very much a life-changing decision. I’d always loved a drink, but when I hit 40, my relationship with alcohol changed. A couple of glasses of wine and I’d be slurring my words. Hangxiety became part of my morning (and 4am) routine. It just wasn’t fun anymore.

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Plus, I noticed changes in my skin and hair. I mostly put them down to ageing in general and, of course, hormones. I began to see fine lines in areas that I wasn’t used to seeing them – like on the upper lip. My skin looked dehydrated and dull even after just one drink the night before. And my hair definitely lost its zhush, as I like to call it. It just looked dry and lank.

So I started to have that inner conversation that I now know many midlife women have about their drinking habits: Why was I doing it to myself? It was making me feel awful on the inside, and look just as bad on the outside. It wasn’t making me feel good at all. "I’m almost 50 and I need to start looking after myself. I need to stop!"

So I did. And now, as I approach my 50th birthday, almost two years sober, I’ve realised that this was the best decision I could ever have made. For my skin, my hair and also for me. Here’s exactly what happened when I decided to leave the booze behind…

How sobriety changed my midlife skin

Day 1

On the 19th of July, I woke up in a defiant mood and declared to my Instagram community that I was going sober. Now, when I look back at this photo I took that morning, I see a puffy face, congested skin and a dullness in my eyes.

In the beauty industry, we’re taught to fix and hide our "imperfections", but no amount of the best concealer or retinol could hide what I now know my face was showing me. It looked weighted down – exactly how I felt!

Day 7

I couldn’t believe how quickly I saw changes in my skin and face. My skin was brighter, glowier, softer. I could see more definition in my cheekbones. My eyes also looked clearer, which helped lift my complexion all around.

This was when I got my first compliment from someone asking what I’d done to my skin. The knock-on effect of living alcohol-free began to show in my confidence, even at this early stage, and it felt great.

1 month

The biggest change for me at this stage was that my skin stopped looking and feeling constantly dehydrated. It felt and looked more plump and glowy and it felt softer and bouncier to the touch – almost like you get that "baby springback" in the skin.

When you remove the diuretic effect of alcohol, the water that you drink actually reaches your skin and hair. So the fine lines, like the ones I’d noticed above my lip, weren’t so obvious. My eyes continued to appear brighter, which just lifted my whole face. There were no pillow creases left on my face in the morning.

6 months

This is when I really began to notice changes in all parts of my life – not just my skin and hair (which had just begun to feel softer and look way shinier, but more of that to come).

Being sober at six months made me look at myself differently. Before sobriety, my morning routine was rushed and unconsidered. I would wake up way past the alarm, hitting snooze a few times, with a dread and anxious feeling about the day. I wouldn’t really look in the mirror. Yes, I’d always do my skincare – but I was just going through the motions.

At this point, I began waking up early – not to get the kids ready for school or to prepare their breakfast, but for me! I’d get into the bathroom and actually look at my reflection because I was proud of what I saw. Same skincare routine but more considered and intentional.

1 year

This is when I saw a huge difference in my hair. We are often sold the idea that after 40, hair thinning and a dry, lank texture are part of the menopause. And while yes, that can be the case, and hormones shifts are real, I found that removing alcohol was one of the main reasons I got my hair back to its former glory.

Before, I’d never managed to grow it past collarbone length. It would break so easily. But on my 49th birthday, it was the longest it had been since I was 21. And then there was the fullness. In my early 40s, I began noticing my scalp more in certain light and more hair in the plughole after I washed it. That was no longer the case. It looked and felt thicker and stronger.

2 years (almost)

As someone with nearly three decades of experience in the beauty industry, I have seen trends come and go and people often ask me for the secret to ageing well. I don’t do Botox or filler. Yes, I still rely on good skincare, but it’s a booze-free lifestyle that’s definitely behind my almost-50 glow.

I have been through a lot of life in the last two years. I’m building my The Beauty Ed brand in America, and I’m turning 50 this year. And now when I look in the mirror, I see myself as stronger than ever. Cutting out the booze has taught me that looking and feeling great as you age is not about looking younger – it’s about looking like yourself, and for a long time, I didn’t feel like I looked myself at all. Today I finally do!