‘I was starting to spiral’

Key points

• David Bromstad said he “started diving into substances” after his home was partially destroyed in a storm.

• The HGTV star is now nearing three years of sobriety: “I’m in such a good place.”

• Bromstad explained why he wanted to publicly discuss his struggles: “I think it’s important for people to understand that I’m human.”

David Bromstad’s home was partially destroyed by a devastating storm — and now he’s reflecting on the fallout of that loss.

The HGTV star discussed his struggles with substance abuse in the new special My Lottery Dream Home: David’s Happy Ending, explaining how the Florida storm greatly affected his well-being.

“My house was completely f—ed, and not in a fun way,” he said. “Whatever happens in the house feels like it’s happening to you deep within.”

Bromstad, who also hosted the home improvement show Color Splash, recalled poring over his plans for renovating his home. “The one thing I can do is to dive into the work, have as much prepared for this house when it does get up and running again,” he said. “With all of the drama, the house, the stress, the insurance claims, bleeding money, I just had to keep busy.”

However, Bromstad said his obsession over his house was a “cover-up to what was really happening” when he was “losing control” of his life.

“My mind is going crazy,” he remembered. “The sleep is becoming less and less and less, ’cause the stress is rising, rising, rising. I was starting to spiral. I got into some unhealthy behaviors. It’s really easy to go there when you’re under distress. You know, using substances … it’s a real easy escape to take yourself out of a stressful situation. I knew I was in trouble.”

Bromstad elaborated on his addiction in a new interview with Entertainment Tonight. “I was not taking care of myself,” he said, noting that his expanding fame wasn’t helping. “I was doing things to my body that just weren’t correct, and the show kept getting bigger, and I kept getting more recognized, which is a blessing, but also, where’s my privacy? So I started diving into substances and crawling up into a corner.”

He added that after the storm, he and his home were both “broken down inside and outside,” which made him realize he needed help.

“So I went to rehab,” he recalled. “My psychiatrist there said, ‘How are you today?’ It was like day 2. I’m like, ‘I’m so excited to be here. I’m ready to get help and live a better life!'”

The doctor immediately called Bromstad’s bluff, he said. “He goes, ‘When’s that gonna stop so the real work can begin?’ I go, ‘No one’s ever created that pathway for me to not be this on personality.”

Bromstad is now nearing three years of sobriety. “I’m in such a good place,” he told Entertainment Tonight, noting that he allowed himself to go all out on his recent wave of home renovations. “When I was using, I was very frugal with money. I’m a very expensive sober person!”

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The HGTV star also explained why he wanted to get candid about his addiction in an interview with TV Insider. “I think it’s important for people to understand that I’m human, that I struggle, that I am innately a bright and shiny person,” he told the outlet. “And that version of myself came from past childhood traumas, and that version of myself saved me back then. It got me the job on HGTV. It has propelled so many unique and beautiful versions of myself, until it started to destroy me.”

“It’s unsustainable for someone to be that authentically happy,” he continued. “You can’t have the bright and shining times without the darkness. I don’t push away the darkness. I bring it in because I know the darkness only makes my bright and shiny parts shine that much bigger.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly