Geordie Shore's Aaron Chalmers drank 15 huge bottles of beer a day after he lost work in secret anxiety battle

HE is best known for being a confident party boy turned professional MMA fighter, but behind closed doors Geordie Shore star Aaron Chalmers has been fighting something else – anxiety.

The 33-year-old has been secretly struggling for years, and, speaking about his hidden issues for the first time, admitted he felt he “couldn’t see a way out” when he was initially hit with anxiety a few years ago.

Things came to head during lockdown last year when he turned to booze – downing 15 huge bottles of beer a day- and almost lost everything.

Now sober for eight months Aaron has welcomed his second son Maddox with partner Talia Oatway and can finally look forward to the future.

He told The Sun: “I’ve been eight months sober today, it was for me and my family. This time last year I was in one of the worst states I’ve ever been in with the Covid, I had just lost an MMA fight, everything was going downhill because of alcohol. 

“Me and my missus had just split up, lost a fight and I was just in a bad way. The anxiety was just the worst it had ever been. I took the decision on August 16th to have a year off of drink and now I am eight months in, I don’t think I’ll go back to it.” 


Describing just how bad things got, he said: “I was drinking f***ing 12 to 15 bottles a night…big bottles as well. 

“I ballooned to the heaviest I’ve ever been; I was 20 kilos over my fight weight. I was out of shape, I was unhealthy, I was smoking 40 to 50 cigarettes a night. I was getting up and eating one meal a day, fast food. 

“I would take the dogs out and go straight to Tesco and get another 10 bottles. I’m not talking about little bottles. I’m talking about big bottles. I was in such a state but I feel like I had to get to that low point to come out of it.”

Like many people, Covid meant that work really slowed down for Aaron, who is now a boxer. 

He was left concerned about providing for his family and drinking became a way to numb the fear.

“There was no work coming in, even for me I was like how long can I keep up? I have a car, kids, dogs, how long can you maintain this with no money coming in?” he admitted.

“Of course it was a worry, that’s when the drinking started, I would have a BBQ and a few bottles and then it got a bit more and before I knew it I was in the house by myself drinking f***ing 12 to 15 bottles a day.”


Aaron first realised he was suffering from anxiety a few years ago when he couldn’t face leaving the house on a shopping trip. 

He broke down and told Talia what was going on and she immediately got him help from a therapist. 

“I knew something had to be done otherwise it was just going to be a slippery slope. The way I was feeling, I couldn’t see a way out until my girlfriend got us help,” he said.

It wasn’t until last year that anxiety reared its head again – and this time was back with a vengeance.

Fortunately Aaron decided enough was enough and when he had almost lost everything, he started to turn his life around.

He said:  “I had kind of lost everything, my missus and the kids had moved out and I was just by myself. I was looking at the bottom of a pint glass and I was thinking where the f*** has my life gone."

It was then that Aaron decided to give up booze. 

“Things have turned out for the better, it’s been probably the best eight months I’ve had in a long time,” he added.

Asked why he wanted to speak about it now, he continued:  “I’ve been there at the lowest point and if I can speak about it and help other people in situations. I feel like Covid is causing a lot of anxiety, they don’t know where money is coming from, they don’t know if they’re going to get back to work, obviously relationships. 

“It’s put a strain on everything, so I feel now is a good time to speak out about anxiety and try and get it out there a bit more – especially for me.”

He added: “I wouldn’t want anyone to feel like they have nowhere to go, that’s not the case. One 30 minute phone call to someone will change their whole life. 

"Also men never tend to discuss mental health. I was a scaffolder, I worked on the oil rigs and then became a Geordie Shore cast member which people see as being an 'ultimate lad'.

"I want men to freely talk about mental health without feeling embarrassed or that it makes them less of a man."

"It's 2021, we are so much more forward with mental health and I hope my story will encourage men to come forward and talk about it instead of keeping it in.

“That’s why I am doing this because I have a bit of a platform, even if I can help one person then that’s a job well done.”

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