Sean Holland decided his life had to change after a near-death experience in a hotel on his birthday
Sean Holland decided his life had to change after a near-death experience in a hotel on his birthday
Neil Shaw Assistant Editor
13:26, 26 Feb 2026Updated 13:36, 26 Feb 2026
A man who drank so much vodka and wine at age 21 that he turned yellow, his urine turned black and he ‘looked like a Simpson’ is now sober and helping others quit alcohol after coming close to death. Sean Holland started drinking to help with anxiety and panic disorder.
By the time he was 21, Sean was drinking beer first thing in the morning while working as a landscaper and would get ‘the shakes’ if he didn’t. The 27-year-old then moved on to wine and spirits, drinking half a pint of vodka for breakfast and downing six bottles of wine during the day.
At his peak, Sean could drink three litres of vodka in a day.
Sean said he was violent when drunk and went to prison three times between August 2023 and October 2024 for drink-related charges. It was on his birthday in March 2025 that he decided he was ‘done’ with drinking after waking up in a hotel room strewn with empty booze bottles after a failed suicide attempt.
But going cold turkey triggered a seizure that saw Sean blue-lighted to hospital after being found by his horrified parents. Doctors found Sean was suffering from liver hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, kidney damage, an inflamed spleen and pancreatitis.
Sean’s urine turned black and his entire body turned yellow for three months – with people saying he looked like one of the Simpsons. After being discharged from hospital, Sean spent two months in rehab and has now been clean for 11 months.
Now Sean works with people struggling with alcoholism and wants to encourage people that there is ‘always light at the end of the tunnel’. Sean, from Epping, Essex, said: “It started off with beer and then wine and then went to hardcore spirits.
“It took control over my whole body. It helped my anxiety, it gave me a confidence I never had before. From the age of 21 I used to get the alcohol shakes and when I was at work, I used to have a beer or two. I was hiding it but don’t know how I got away with it.
“From 23 I was drinking first thing in the morning. I’d either down half a pint of vodka or two or three beers before I could even function. From 24, I was going through about six bottles of wine a day, [as] beer didn’t do anything for me anymore.
“After that the wine didn’t do much, by the age of 25 I realised spirits were my absolute favourite. I used to drink a bottle of vodka from 5am till 11am just so I don’t throw up or have a fit or a seizure.
“By March last year I was drinking two to three litres of straight vodka a day.”
Sean booked into a hotel room in a bid to end his life in March 2025, but then got a ‘random’ wake-up call to quit the booze. Sean said: “I was staying at a hotel and I tried to do the unthinkable and not wake up the next day.
“I passed out that night and woke up on the 20 March and I still to this day do not know what came over me. All I know is I was done with it all. I thought ‘right, I can’t do this anymore’, it was a random wake-up call.
“My parents came into my hotel room, I think it was my birthday, and they found me on the floor with my door wide open having a seizure. They forced me into an ambulance. They found out that at the age of 27 I had liver hepatitis, inflamed spleen, cirrhosis of the liver, kidney damage and pancreatitis.
“I got pumped up with every single drug you can think of. The scar on my liver can never be healed and it’s very fatty.”
During his hospital stay Sean said his urine turned into a ‘black bloody colour’ and he turned yellow ‘from head to toe’. Sean said: “I was yellow all over from head to toe, my organs were shutting down on me. My urine was a black bloody colour. I still don’t know how I’m still alive.
“I saw the yellow in my eye to begin with but didn’t care. A fter four days in the hospital I went completely yellow, you couldn’t see any white in my eyes.
“I was yellow for a good three months. It took about three months until my eyes were back to a normal colour. Everyone was looking at me and calling me Simpsons’ characters but I just laughed it off. I hit rock bottom so hard I couldn’t care anymore. “
Now, Sean works with people struggling with alcoholism to show that positive change can happen. Sean said: “There will always be a light at the end of the tunnel no matter what you think. If I can push through it, anyone can. My life has changed in ways I can’t even explain. I got my family back, a steady income, and friends who are good for me.”
If you’re struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email [email protected] or visit their site to find your local branch.
