She Used to Go to Great Lengths to Hide Her Drinking from Her Husband. Now, She's 165 Days Sober (Exclusive)

• Heather Richard went viral for sharing how she used to hide her drinking habits from her husband

• She's now "freshly sober" and has had a drink for more than 150 days

• She continues to share her journey online, being vulnerable about her struggles with addiction

One TikTok user is getting vulnerable about her relationship with alcohol.

Heather Richard has been sober for more than 150 days after years of struggling with an addiction to alcohol — but despite being “still freshly sober,” as she puts it, she’s getting candid online about her journey.

On Nov. 22, Richard posted a video on TikTok sharing how she used to keep her drinking habits from her husband, detailing the ways she would hide her daily consumption from him.

Some of her moves would include tracking him on Life360 and being sure she was taking shots before he came home from work; refilling half-empty bottles with some water before burying them in the freezer; and hiding empties deep in her trash can. When her husband came home from work and perhaps opened a drink, she would "decide" to have one with him, making herself a strong cocktail before sitting down next to him.

"Little does he know I'm already halfway to drunk," she says in the video. "And this is very far from my first drink. I'm ashamed but that's what I did."

“Hiding my drinking from my husband was one of the hardest parts of my addiction,” Richard tells PEOPLE exclusively. “I was living with someone I loved, yet I felt like I was hiding a huge part of myself. Addiction makes you a stranger in your own life — it twists you into someone you don’t recognize, and it hurts the people who care about you the most.”

Since posting the video, it’s been viewed more than 1.3 million times and garnered 85,000 likes. Richard admits that sharing these videos online has been “really uncomfortable,” especially as she’s still navigating her first year of sobriety, but at the same time it’s offered a way for her to process.

“I remember how alone I felt when I was deep in my addiction,” she shares. “There’s so much shame tied to it, and it’s easy to believe you’re the only one struggling. I wanted to be a voice for someone who might feel as lost as I once did — to let them know they’re not broken, they’re not alone, and there is hope.”

She admits she “needed to find my footing in sobriety first,” but she then realized that being open online about these experience might help viewers online while offering her a way to “process what I had been through.”

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“Those videos are raw and painful to look back on because they capture some of my darkest moments — moments I spent so much time trying to hide,” Richard admits. “When they started gaining attention, I felt exposed, like everyone could see the parts of me I wasn’t proud of. But as the comments started rolling in, I realized that sharing those moments was helping people. I was hearing from others who saw themselves in my story and felt less alone because of it.”

Richard says she decided to get sober on July 28, 2024. That night she remembers “sitting alone, drinking a bottle of vodka, and just feeling completely empty,” and says “something clicked.”

“My drinking started when I was 16, but looking back, I can see that it wasn’t just about drinking — it was about numbing a lot of the pain I was carrying,” she says, noting that various “difficult experiences” led her to lean on alcohol to numb her pain. “Alcohol became my way to cope, and what started as something ‘normal’ quickly spiraled out of control. By my 20s, it was masked as partying, but the reality was, I was sinking deeper.”

As for her relationship with her husband, she says their partnership has “transformed in ways I didn’t think were possible” following her decision to quit drinking — and he’s been a steady supporter of hers through the journey.

“Sobriety gave us the space to rebuild trust and reconnect with each other on a deeper level. It isn’t an overnight process; there were and continue to be a lot of hard conversations and moments of accountability. But he’s been my biggest supporter through it all,” she says.

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Richard continues to share near-daily updates to her 34,000 TikTok followers who follow along on her sobriety journey. She touches base with them to celebrate each day she spends sober, while also answering viewers’ questions about her life and her various resources she’s developed.

“I’ve come to see the power in that vulnerability,” she says of her TikTok presence. “Addiction thrives in silence and shame, and for so long, I thought I had to keep my struggles hidden. By putting it out there, I’ve been able to take ownership of my story and show that recovery is possible — even when it feels impossible. If those videos can help someone feel seen or give them the courage to reach out for help, then it’s worth it.”

Her “coping toolbox,” as she calls her litany of resources when she’s feeling particularly triggered, include journaling, long walks, talks with her therapist, reading or “simply sitting in quiet reflection.” Richard also says she leans on her faith and her church community has been an integral part of her current support network. In fact, a “life-changing conversation with a stranger at church” was part of her “lifeline” that helped her decide to get sober.

“I think it’s important to remember that sobriety is about so much more than quitting drinking. For me, it’s been a journey of healing — of rediscovering who I am underneath the pain, shame, and addiction,” she shares.

“Sobriety has been the most difficult and the most beautiful thing I’ve ever done. It’s taught me how to live — not just survive — and how to show up for myself and the people I love. I want others to know that no matter how far gone you feel, there is always hope. Recovery is possible, and you are worth the fight.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

Read the original article on People