5 Celebrities Who Have Been to Rehab and Got Sober

Top 5 Celebrity Rehab Success Stories

Robert Downey Jr.

A notable actor in Hollywood, acclaimed for his role in the 2008 American Superhero movie Iron Manhad spent most of his early years under the influence of drugs and substance abuse. Different media journals and newspapers covered his arrest owing to drug abuse. News stories of his sobering up, slipping back into drugs, and getting arrested were recurrent until he realised that he had enough and decided to remain on the path to sobriety.

Reminiscing his days in rehab, Downey Jr. said, “Job one is getting out of that cave”.

“A lot of people do come out but don’t improve. So, the thing is to go out and recognise the importance of that aggressive denial of your fate, come through the crucible forged into a more powerful metal. Or whatever. But I don’t even know if that was my experience”.

Sanjay Dutt:

Infamous for his addiction to lethal drugs like cocaine and heroin, is Bollywood’s Sanjay Dutt who delivered a series of hit movies. This includes his famous role as “Munna Bhai” in the movie Munnabhai MBBS” and its sequel – Lage Raho Munnabhai alongside the movie “Son of Sardar” post recovering from drug abuse at a celebrities rehab facility in the USA.

Listed among the clean and sober celebrities in the B-town, the famous actor revealed how he found it painful to relive his life while watching his recent biopic – Sanju.

In his interview with India Today, Dutt said, “Drug addiction is a disease which can not be cured. Today, if I think I can smoke up a joint, I’m finished. The fear of relapse is in the first 5 – 6 months of quitting. So, I diverted my mind to the gym. I started feeling good with my body”.

Johnny Depp

This noted American actor, producer, and musician laid bare his problems with drugs and alcohol use. Recognised for his roles in hit movies like The Curse of the Black Pearl, Finding Neverland, and Sweeney Todd, Depp confessed his life-long dependence on drugs including marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy, LSD, prescription painkillers, opiates, and magic mushrooms.

In a 2008 interview with Rolling Stone, Depp said, “I’m a dumb-ass, and I poisoned myself for years.” Recalling his experimentation with alcohol, Depp added, “I was poisoning myself beyond belief …There was a lot of liquor. A lot of liquor. I was pretty unhealthy.”

Bradley Cooper

Like many other celebrities who went to rehab post a prolonged and vicious cycle of drug and substance abuse, noted American actor and filmmaker Bradley Cooper came clean on his addiction problems.

In a follow-up interview with Barbara Walters regarding his continued addiction to alcohol and opioids, Cooper said, “I wouldn’t have been able to have access to myself or other people, or even been able to take in other people if I hadn’t changed my life. No way. I never would have been able to have the relationships that I do. I never would have been able to take care of my father the way I did when he was sick.”

The actor added how sobriety gave arenewed push to his career and how timely realisation of addiction and its management had allowed him to enjoy his success.

Eminem

The multimillion-selling rapper Eminem like many other celebrities who have been to rehab complained of pain, helplessness, and shame during his struggle with substance abuse. Interspersed with regular ups and downs, this American rapper, songwriter, and record producer took the world by storm with his ridiculously fast raps till he became involved with drugs and prescription painkillers to beat the stress of continuous travelling and performing.

Like other celebrities in rehab, the recorded singer had gone through the full 12-step program of recovering with meetings and therapies. Now sober, since April 2008, the rapper explained how replacing one addiction with another – of self-growth –  aided in his complete recovery and consequent freedom from addiction problems.

Eager to turn around his life away from drugs, Eminem started exercising vigorously. In a recent interview with the Men’s Journal, the famous rapper said, “It’s easy to understand how people replace addiction with exercise. I would get up in the morning, and before I went to the studio, I would run eight and a half miles in about an hour and follow that up with eight and a half miles at night.”

Drug Addiction Help: Fight for your life

Celebrity in rehab stories must be treated than just mere short and entertaining anecdotes. These are lessons learned over a period as they share experiences of their struggles and memories filled with remorse for  good times lost to drugs. However, more than feeling just defeated and worthless, these celebrities have shown how their indomitable will to beat the lure of drugs has transformed their lives into stories worth telling to the world.

Sober celebrities remind us that it may not be too late to beat addiction on its ground. The realisation of the ultimate purpose of life is the first step to combat substance abuse problems. Admit that you have a problem that needs to be rid of. Living in denial will only aggravate the problem.

If They Can, Surely You Can!

For drug addiction help, reach us at Cadabam’s Anunitha. Call us at +91 96111 94949.