“I set myself a challenge – to trek to Everest Base Camp” – Emma Sebrof

I run a hospitality group in Hong Kong

Running ten bars, pubs and restaurants in a city that never sleeps meant one thing: drinking wasn’t just part of my life — it was part of my job. Late nights, endless socialising, constant tasting and toasting… until slowly, drinking stopped being something I controlled and started controlling me.

Blackouts became normal. One morning, a friend tried to show me a video of my behaviour the night before — and the humiliation hit me like a brick. I knew I’d been wasted, but seeing it with my own eyes was unbearable.

So, I took control and started looking for help

That’s when I found OYNB — and the shift was immediate.

Challenges, deadlines, competition… that’s how I’m wired. So once I committed to the 90-Day Challenge, I was in.People were surprised, but when I framed it as a “challenge”, they backed off. I stocked AF beer in all my bars, kept myself accountable, and stayed focused.

After 90 days I had a night out

A date night, to be exact — and I got smashed.

I didn’t remember the date.I didn’t remember what I said.I didn’t even remember how it ended.

Back to square one.

But instead of spiralling, I doubled down. I signed up for the full year — and this time, something inside me clicked. I started identifying not as someone “trying not to drink”, but as someone who simply does not drink.

That mindset shift changed everything.

I set myself a challenge early on — to trek to Everest Base Camp

And on St. Patrick’s Day, day 306 AF, I made it.

Less than two years earlier I’d undergone my fifth knee operation and thought hiking was behind me forever. But with an incredible surgeon, intense physio, strict training — and ten alcohol-free months — I stood at Everest Base Camp.Bucket list item #1: done.

I even raised money for charity during the trek, which impacted me far more emotionally than I expected.

This would never have happened if I had been drinking

Reaching this goal required:

• Weekend after weekend of long hikes• After-work training sessions• Evening physio appointments• Early mornings and discipline• Consistency over almost an entire year

There’s no universe in which I would’ve achieved even 10% of this lifestyle if I were still drinking.

Now, comfortably AF, life feels more stable. Problems still happen. People still annoy me. Bad days still exist.But instead of reacting, I breathe. I pause. I handle things better. And most days, I can genuinely find something to smile about.

Thank you, OYNB

The support from the OYNB tribe — the honesty, the solidarity, the daily posts — has been a huge part of my success. Seeing so many people work so hard to change their lives reminds me to keep going.

I’ve changed my relationship with alcohol forever.And I’m proud of the life I’m building — one clear, grounded, unstoppable day at a time.

Thank you OYNB.