Nairobi, April 29 -- Some people take a few drinks and are fine, others take just one and slide into alcoholism. It is a familiar paradox of modern life; the way alcohol sits so easily in celebrations, in stress relief, in routine, and yet turns unpredictable in the body.

For many, the shift is subtle. A tolerance that once felt solid begins to slip. Two beers hit harder than six once did. A hangover stretches into a second day. The body, without warning, stops keeping up.

There is a moment many drinkers recognise but rarely speak about. The moment when what used to feel manageable no longer is.

Amon Kipkoech laughs a little when he says it now.

"I'm going to 40. I almost did not make it here."

There is an ease in his voice today, bu...