Home and Away star Emily Weir opens up about maintaining her sobriety during the festive season

Emily Weir reached an incredible milestone in April – remaining sober for five years.

But the Home and Away star, 32, says she still faces a struggle with maintaining her sobriety during the festive season. 

While she is ‘proud’ of what she has accomplished, she said there is still a level of exclusion during Christmas because she’s not able to let loose like those around her.

‘There are a lot of parties and a lot of socialising. I guess I do feel, not the pull or desire to drink which thankfully has been relieved for me, but how will I disperse my energy, how long do I want to be at that party before people get on that level where you can be kind of excluded,’ she told The Daily Telegraph.

‘The truth is I still kind of feel left out, not because of people leaving me out, but because I am not on their same level. 

‘So I leave early and sometimes I do feel sad, where I wish I did not have this problem but then I would much rather be healthy and be sane than the opposite because if you don’t keep in front of it, for me to drink again would really mean some serious issues.’

While she is ‘proud’ of what she has accomplished, she said there is still a level of exclusion during Christmas because she’s not able to let loose like those around her

The soap star, who portrays restaurateur Mackenzie Booth on the Channel Seven show, went on to say the ‘contradiction’ of being ‘proud’ and yet wishing otherwise ‘is a normal part of being a sober person’. 

She explained the ‘price is far too high’ to gamble and she was happy to make the social sacrifice for her sobriety. 

It comes just as the Home and Away cast has wrapped on filming for the year, with Weir slated to perform on the Carols in the Domain Christmas special. 

‘The truth is I still kind of feel left out, not because of people leaving me out, but because I am not on their same level,’ she said

After spending the holidays with her loved ones, she said she will then jet off to Bali for her first solo adventure.  

Weir landed her breakthrough role as Mackenzie on Home and Away in 2019. 

Prior to that, she appeared in the TV series The Sleepover Club in 2003.

The soap star, who portrays restaurateur Mackenzie Booth, went on to say the ‘contradiction’ of being ‘proud’ and yet wishing otherwise ‘is a normal part of being a sober person’

Weir described her casting on Home and Away as like a dream come true in an interview with Stuff.

‘It was like winning the Lotto for myself and for all my extended family members,’ she said.

‘My family still watches Home and Away. They call it Homie. When Homie is on… everything just shuts down. You are not allowed to make calls or anything.’

Weir landed her breakthrough role as Mackenzie on Home and Away in 2019