'I have been to rehab twice' Rono shares her battle with alcohol addiction

MAUREEN WARUINGE ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST

01 September 2023

• She has spoken to Elsa about the comparison from KOT

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Deborah Chebet Ronoh feared success so much that it led her to sabotage opportunities and indulge in alcohol as a coping mechanism. People around her believed in her greatness but she didn't.

In the Lynn Ngugi Rebuilding series, Ronoh said she was aware she was destined for greatness, but fear held her back.

"I was so scared of success, I would get opportunities and I would postpone them

I genuinely believed I didn't think I deserved them till now. I would ignore emails, I would not show up in the fear of I don't know if I can handle it," she explained

She explained that this made her appear ungrateful, and led to netizens comparing her to others such as Elsa Majimbo who began to be more famous and successful.

"And so when even other people began to rise, and people would compare me with other creators like Elsa and for so long I felt like ok maybe it's me who is the problem, it's my fault maybe I should have done this, I shouldn't have done this.

But I realized if it can happen for other people it just means that mine is on the way."

Speaking more about Elsa, Rono added

"I realized this conversation I might have it as many times as I do not want to have it. When the comparison began, I was going through depression. I was in an abusive relationship, nothing was going well, and I wasn't focused on who was doing better than me. I was actively sabotaging everything"

She no longer takes the comparison negatively

"We are where we are right now. And what are we doing with the now, The only way I can look at it is flattery. If she was inspired by something I did then that means I'm doing something good. If she can reach there and I truly believe in my light and my shine, why not also reach those heights"

The two girls talked at the beginning of the comparison, and later on had one video call. Rono cut off communication

"For my mental health I took a bit of a break from her," she said about being triggered.

The content creator told Lynn Ngugi that she hopes to be an inspiration where she can, doing wellness and self-care.

She is on a sobriety journey, explaining the genesis of her drinking habit.

"I wasn't drinking to have fun, I came to realize that a lot of the coping mechanisms we have. Alcohol was a creeping monster in my life. it started like a joke. I was young and trying to have fun and it became a coping mechanism. I would drink until I blackout, I wasn't drinking to have fun"

She drank heavily for a year and a half, using her earnings to buy alcohol. This eventually affected her health, and love life, and

"I have been to rehab twice. My first time was forceful. "

She has learned a lot of lessons along the way.

"Cyberbullying affected me. I was such a vibrant girl. When I started I was so hopeful and then the comments started getting to me. I began to believe them, I began to compare myself, and so alcohol was an escape from reality"

She began to study the underlying cause. She walked into a rehab center on her own.

"I wanted to change. And I said if it's liquor let's go to rehab."She is one month sober now.