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Dermot Whelan reveals how quitting booze has changed his life

Dermot Whelan has revealed how quitting booze has changed his life for the better.

The Today FM star, who took over Anton Savage’s 9am – 12pm slot with his co-host Dave Moore last week, admitted that he’s shocked at how people act around him now that he’s sober.

“Some people think you’re a spy in the camp, sitting there sober quietly monitoring everyone else’s behaviour.

“People look at you like you’ve three heads, others will just drop you and won’t call you to go out because they don’t want you hanging around,” he told the Irish Mirror.

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“The pub becomes a really boring loud place, you’ll gravitate towards friends who do more exercise or outdoor stuff.”

Back in November 2014, the former Republic of Telly star decided to undergo hypnosis in a bid to give up booze after waking up with a very, very bad hangover.

The radio host wanted to steer clear of drink for a year, and documented his experience in a series of Today FM podcasts, which bagged him a prestigious New York Festival radio award in 2015, however, he went back to drinking soon after.

“The year off it everything was better, having had the comparison I’m really selfish about it now I’m not giving away all my good feelings to booze. I’m calmer, for me the biggest difference is the emotional state. I would have beaten myself up for drinking and I’m far nicer to myself not drinking.”

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“My general anxiety and fear levels of work or challenges coming up on the horizon are much lower now, I get excited about things. You do have times when you feel dull and boring but the reality is that someone sculling pints, well they’re kind of boring, I’d rather be doing something else,” he said.

The presenter also took time to pay tribute to Anton Savage, who announced his departure from Today FM late last year.

“It’s always sad when a colleague leaves but we feel there’s a place in the market right now for something different. Anton’s show was closer to the old Ray D’Arcy model, it’s not fair to compare the two,” he added.

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