After Opioid Addiction: 10 Celebrities\u2019 Journey to Recovery<\/h2>\n
The United States \u2013 in the grip of the nation\u2019s worst opioid epidemic<\/a> in history \u2013 lost over 700,000 people between 1999 and 2017 to drug overdoses. On average, 130 Americans die every day from an overdose<\/a> related to opioids<\/a>. Approximately 1.7 million Americans have a diagnosable addiction to prescription opioids<\/a> (such as OxyContin<\/a>\u00a0or hydrocodone<\/a>). Another 652,000 people suffer from addiction to heroin<\/a>. Celebrities<\/a> are no different and their journey to recovery can be just as challenging. Below are 10 celebrities who have found recovery from opioid addiction<\/a>\u00a0and continue to promote sobriety.<\/p>\n Paid Advertising.\u00a0We receive advertising fees from purchases through BetterHelp links. <\/p>\n Online Counseling, Insurance Accepted. <\/p>\n Get professional help from an online addiction and mental health counselor from BetterHelp. <\/p>\n Start receiving support via phone, video, or live-chat. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The universally-beloved Iron Man\u00a0actor was first introduced to drugs by his father at the age of 6. In the years that followed, Downey recounts experimenting with a range of substances, including mixing alcohol with heroin and amphetamines. After multiple failed attempts at sobriety in and out of rehab<\/a> and jail, Downey checked himself into rehab in 2001. It took 6 years of sobriety and working to regain the trust of studio heads before he was cast in both Iron Man and Ben Stiller\u2019s Tropic Thunder\u00a0in 2007.<\/p>\n Job one is get out of that cave. A lot of people do get out but don\u2019t change. So the thing is to get out and recognize the significance of that aggressive denial of your fate, come through the crucible forged into a stronger metal.<\/p>\n – Robert Downey Jr., Vanity Fair, 2014 <\/p>\n August Alsina, too, grew up with parents addicted to drugs. While he witnessed the damage crack cocaine<\/a> had on his family, he failed to see the destructive power of prescription painkillers until it was too late. Following hospitalization for exhaustion (where he was in a coma for 3 days, dying twice), his doctor prescribed Percocet\u00ae<\/a> for pain. After a tearful phone call from longtime friend, Jada Pinkett-Smith, he made the decision to seek recovery.<\/p>\n Because it\u2019s coming from a doctor, you feel like, what am I doing wrong?<\/p>\n – August Alsina, Red Table Talk, 2018 <\/p>\n While promoting A Star Is Born\u00a0with Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper opened up about his own history with prescription drug abuse and alcoholism<\/a> \u2013 similar to his character in the movie, Jackson Maine. The Hangover\u00a0star has been sober since the age of 29 but admits the trauma of addiction and his journey to recovery helped make him the healthy, focused celebrity he is today.<\/p>\n I wouldn\u2019t have been able to have access to myself or other people, or even been able to take in other people, if I hadn\u2019t changed my life. 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. So many things.<\/p>\n – Bradley Cooper, Source, Year <\/p>\n The pressure of being on the immensely popular Friends\u00a0and chronic pain landed Matthew Perry in rehab twice for a Vicodin\u00ae<\/a> addiction. The Fools Rush In\u00a0actor has also been treated for addictions to alcohol, Amphetamines, and Methadone<\/a> (an opioid addiction treatment medication<\/a> sometimes abused by people seeking to \u201ccome down\u201d from heroin). After his initial recovery, Perry went on to open a sober house and lobby Congress to allow more drug courts. Unfortunately, he lost his battle with addiction in October of 2023 when he was found unresponsive; autopsy reports found buprenorphine and ketamine in his system.<\/p>\n Drug courts are the single most effective program for curing serious drug addicts for life-long recovery.<\/p>\n – Matthew Perry, speaking to House Appropriations Subcommittee, 2013 <\/p>\n Before Eminem released Recovery, an album detailing the depths of his addiction to prescription drugs, the emcee had severe opioid and benzodiazepine addictions<\/a>. What began with misusing Vicodin to feel \u201cmellow\u201d, spiraled into a dependence on a cocktail of prescriptions, including Xanax\u00ae<\/a> and Valium\u00ae<\/a>. He credits his love for his young daughter, Hailie Scott Mathers (now 23), for his dedication to recovery and continued sobriety.<\/p>\n It\u2019s been a learning process, I\u2019m growing. I couldn\u2019t believe that anybody could be naturally happy without being on something. So, I would say to anybody, \u201cIt does get better.\u201d<\/p>\n – Eminem, How to Make Money Selling Drugs, 2013 <\/p>\n Six years after his mega-successful role as King Leonidas of Sparta in 300, Gerard Butler suffered an injury while filming the surfer movie Chasing Mavericks. After receiving a prescription for painkillers, he eventually became dependent on them. In 2012, he checked himself into the Betty Ford Center, where he describes being \u2018ripped apart\u2019 by rehab and realizing how his choices affected his addiction.<\/p>\n I\u2019m glad I did it\u2026 They really do rip you apart [in rehab]. You get rid of a bunch of s**t, realize a bunch more s**t, and you make a plan.<\/p>\n – Gerard Butler, Irish Central, 2012 <\/p>\n Before Macklemore rose to fame with \u201cThrift Shop\u201d, he was drinking alcohol alone in his parents\u2019 home as a 13-year-old. In his twenties, he describes becoming addicted to OxyContin \u2013 even nicknaming it \u201csynthetic heroin\u201d. When his addiction began to seriously jeopardize his relationships as well as the career as a musician he hoped to have, he turned to rehab. Since then, he\u2019s become a vocal advocate for the recovery community. Working with Ryan Lewis and President Barack Obama, he released the documentary\u00a0Prescription for Change: Ending America\u2019s Opioid Crisis\u00a0in 2016.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a progressive disease, it gets worse with time. And I always felt that I could control it by myself, that I could take this drug out or just do this, but it didn\u2019t work and it got worse\u2026 Going to a treatment facility, I was given the tools and the counseling to figure out how to stay sober.<\/p>\n – Macklemore, Billboard, 2016 <\/p>\n Howard Hughes is well-known for his brilliance in aviation engineering and his work in Hollywood (he even produced the original Scarface). In 1946, a plane crash left him with severe, chronic pain. Consequently, after years of dependence on narcotic painkillers, the towering 6\u20194\u201d figure had shrunk to 6\u20191\u2019 by the time of his death. Receiving drugs like phenacetin, codeine<\/a>, and Valium, he would sometimes inject them intravenously, resulting in the kidney damage that took his life.<\/p>\n Party girl daughter of Lionel Richie, socialite, and Simple Life\u00a0star, Nicole Richie, was once arrested for heroin possession and jailed for driving under the influence<\/a>. While she may no longer be BFFs with Paris Hilton, the 36-year-old mom and fashion designer believes it\u2019s important to be honest with her children about her addiction and the recovery that saved her life.<\/p>\n What I can do is use that experience as a tool for when my kids get older. They know that people have died from drugs because they go to school and it happens.<\/p>\n – Nicole Richie, AP News, 2017 <\/p>\n The now 71-year-old rock legend, Steven Tyler, has claimed he spent over $2 million \u201ceasy\u201d on illicit substances<\/a>. As the front man for Aerosmith, Tyler says he\u2019s had serious addiction to heroin, alcohol, cocaine<\/a>, and (most recently) prescription opioids in 2009. Despite knowing how much he was hurting his family<\/a>, his band, and himself, Tyler says addiction didn\u2019t allow him to care about any of it. Nonetheless, he\u2019s been able to recover each time he\u2019s relapsed.<\/p>\n I\u2019m telling you all my truth. I am a drug addict and alcoholic, and fighting it every day.<\/p>\n – Steven Tyler, Billboard, 2014 <\/p>\n Explore These Featured Centers <\/p>\n Name <\/a> <\/p>\n Part of the network <\/p>\n <\/span> Insurance Accepted <\/span> <\/span> Private Pay <\/span> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n Browse Treatment Centers <\/a> <\/p>\n Because up to 60% of people with an addiction relapse<\/a>, addiction specialists emphasize ongoing support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous<\/a> or Narcotics Anonymous<\/a> as well as detox<\/a> and rehab<\/a> when required. Below are a 8 celebrities who did not find recovery from their opioid addiction in time to save their lives.<\/p>\n\n
1. Robert Downey Jr.<\/h3>\n
2. August Alsina<\/h3>\n
3. Bradley Cooper<\/h3>\n
4. Matthew Perry<\/h3>\n
5. Eminem<\/h3>\n
6. Gerard Butler<\/h3>\n
7. Macklemore<\/h3>\n
8. Howard Hughes<\/h3>\n
9. Nicole Richie<\/h3>\n
10. Steven Tyler<\/h3>\n
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Celebrities Who Lost Their Lives To Opioid Addiction<\/h2>\n
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You Don\u2019t Need To Be A Celebrity To Get Help For An Opioid Addiction<\/h2>\n