Yahoo News Suzanne Shaw quit drinking as she had 'beer fear' after Matthew Perry meeting
The singer revealed the moment still comes back to haunt her
Suzanne Shaw has revealed she quit drinking after suffering a bad case of “beer fear” following a meeting with Matthew Perry.
The former Hear’Say star said although she wasn’t addicted she was “a middle lane drinker” who used alcohol amid her struggles with anxiety.
Speaking on ITV’s Lorraine, the star said she knew she had to stop drinking and that the night she met the Friends star was a bit of a “turning point”.
Read more: Suzanne Shaw opens up on 18-year struggle with depression and anxiety
“I had to take away, which I was having, the beer fear, every morning,” she said.
“It was like, that has to go because that’s not helping me.”
She said when she bumped into Perry she had been drinking and started gushing over the actor.
She explained: “I was saying, ‘Oh my God I think you are amazing… Friends, my son loves you.’
“And then I think after that the beer fear was so bad and I just knew removing alcohol was going to be the making on my wellbeing.”
Shaw admitted the incident still comes back to haunt her.
“I still get those moments in the supermarket where I’m just getting a tin of tomatoes and suddenly I'll go, ‘No!’ over Matthew Perry,” she laughed.
It seemed like a dream come true when @SuzanneShaw shot to fame with Hear'Say but in reality it had serious affects on her mental health.
She shares her experiences, how she's doing now & how meeting @MatthewPerry helped her make changes.#Lorraine #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek pic.twitter.com/OWZ6S2jcfz— Lorraine (@lorraine) May 18, 2023
The singer told host Lorraine Kelly about her struggles with mental health after finding fame in Hear’Say, the group she earned a spot in after competing on TV talent show Popstars.
She said there was a time where she hated herself.
“I don’t really remember struggling with anxiety until after Hear’Say and I think it was such a big thing to go through and that overwhelm and that burnout really manifested in depression and anxiety for me,” she said.
“At some points I would really fear leaving the house, I would be in bed, my self-esteem was so low at times.”
“My self-esteem was shot,” Shaw went on. “I would self-sabotage. Nobody hated me more than me.
“I hid that for a very long time. I was too afraid my story wasn’t valid because I was famous and what should I be ungrateful for… I suffered in silence.”
Shaw shot to fame in 2001 when she won a spot in Hear'Say on Popstars, alongside fellow hopefuls Kym Marsh, Myleene Klass, Danny Foster and Noel Sullivan.
Read more: Elton John sent flowers to Myleene Klass after calling Hear'Say 'ugly'
Their hits included Pure And Simple and The Way To Your Love.
Lorraine airs weekdays at 9am on ITV1 and ITVX.
Watch: Lorraine Kelly runs into trouble after losing her voice before going live on air
