‘I’m a bit of a workaholic, sometimes we need to stop’ – Alison Hammond reflects on the year

TV presenter, comedian and media personality Alison Hammond has revealed she has a tendency to work too much.

“I’m a bit of a workaholic. Sometimes we need to stop. You don’t have to be on the go all the time. You can stop,” says the 50-year-old, best known for shows including ITV’s This Morning, alongside Dermot O’Leary, and Channel 4’s The Great British Bake Off, with Noel Fielding.

“That is a lesson I’ve noticed in the last year. I don’t have to keep going,”  although adding that she “loves” her job.

When it comes to looking after her own wellbeing alongside working a lot, she takes “lots of vitamin tablets, getting lots of love from the family, lots of massages, lots of exercise and eating really good food”.

Hammond says that she has always had  a “positive attitude in life” but says adds she “is human as well” and still has up and down days.

“This way of life has been inbred in me from my mum who used to say to me, every time I wake up, I should say thank you, purely for the fact that I am breathing air and breathing life.

“From those times, my mum was a very positive, lovely, religious woman and I suppose I’ve taken quite a lot of her lessons in life.

“I’m very grateful to even be alive. I’m 50 years old now – 50 years in this world and I’m very happy and grateful to be here. I’m so lucky the way my path has gone,” she continues.

“I do believe that if you’re feeling in a negative mood, you need to switch it up and try to think in another way – think of the positives. Feel grateful because there’s always someone worse off than you.”

Most recently, Hammond has been hired as ‘the new recruit’ with Specsavers Home Visits team to help ensure thousands of people don’t miss out on important eye and hearing care.

“I had no idea just how many people are missing out on really important healthcare simply because they can’t leave their homes without support,” she says.

“I thought, do you know what – I’ve got this platform. Let’s help shine a light on it,” she adds. “I can remember when my mum wasn’t very well and it would have been so much easier for the optometrist to come into her home to do an optician test and I thought I just wanted to really get involved. I came away feeling so emotional.”

When it comes to the winter season and her own wellbeing, Hammond says that she “hates the fact you can’t get enough sunlight”.

She says she has a ‘light box’ in her bedroom in the morning, often used as a treatment for seasonal affective disorder.

“I use that purely because it just makes my mood better,” she says. “I really struggle in the dark in these months because you don’t really see any daytime. For example, it’s 4pm now and I’m looking at pitch black outside my house right now, it’s awful.

“However having a light box for my own wellbeing really picks up my mood. I would recommend something like this to anybody.”

Hammond jokes that she has a range of winter self-care routines, one of which involves eating a bread and butter pudding to keep herself grounded. “I absolutely love it,” she says.

“You will be surprised how much it picks you up. You can have a right laugh with your friends and I think it’s really important to stay in touch.”

According to government data, in winter, approximately 45% of adults report feeling lonely. The winter season, in particular, is shown to intensify feelings of isolation and loneliness among individuals. Hammond adds that at this time of year, the feeling of loneliness is something that “definitely creeps up on you”.

“As you get older, people die off, friends move away and I think this time of year, it’s important to think about your neighbours or family and friends who are alone.

For people who do feel cut off in the darker months, Hammond firstly says to watch This Morning.

“We’re like your friends on there,” she says. “People don’t realise how much of a friend the TV actually is and if you’re good on the internet then get yourself into some friendship groups on Facebook.

“There’s so many things that you can do to touch base and there’s so many people in your position who are feeling exactly the same and need someone to talk to.”