It may sound cliché, but addiction is a disease that does not discriminate. If asked to imagine an addict, most people will conjure up an image of a poor and troubled person. However, this is far from reality. Despite being famous and owning a fortune, every now and then we hear a new scandalous case revolving around celebrity addiction.
Throughout history, celebrities have publicly struggled with their addictions. Just like the movies they star in, some of these addiction stories have happy endings while the others end tragically. Let’s have a look at some of the most famous celebrities who struggled with addiction.
1. Robin Williams
The unexpected death of the loved and cherished Robin Williams came as a shock. Although his alcohol and cocaine addictions were fairly common, the news of his death shook Hollywood. The comedy king abused cocaine and alcohol throughout the 1980s. After years of therapy for addiction and depression, Williams was able to overcome his addictive behavior for some time. However, his resolve was not strong enough and he relapsed in 2006, starting a new ordeal.
He sought help and managed to climb out of the spiraling vortex of despair that his life was becoming due to his serious addiction problems. He often joked about his battles with cocaine and alcohol addiction in his standup acts. Unfortunately, at the age of 63, William lost this life-long battle when he was found dead inside his home on August 11, 2014. Rest in peace.
2. Robert Downey Jr
Robert Downey Jr. got fairly famous after his iconic role in Marvel’s Iron Man series, but who’d have thought that this superhero battled against addiction? Born into the limelight with a silver spoon in his mouth, Downey landed his first role when he was only five years of age.
In an interview, he reported that he was brought up surrounded by drugs and that he had his first encounter with cannabis at the age of six. Downey says, “When my dad and I would do drugs together, it was like him trying to express his love for me in the only way he knew how.”
It is not a surprise, then, that Downey got addicted to heroin and his life spiraled out of control. Things got so bad that he was arrested on multiple occasions. Yes, our beloved Iron Man spent more than six months behind bars before he finally managed to quit drugs in 2001. He went through multiple different forms of therapy, and credits the support of his wife as his source of success in defeating his addictions.
3. Daniel Radcliffe
Daniel Radcliffe, otherwise famously known as Harry Potter, battled addiction when he was at the top of his career. In an interview, he revealed that he was often drunk on the set during the later episodes of the Harry Potter saga. According to Radcliffe, he developed an addiction in response to the fame that came with his iconic role, along with the pressure to maintain it.
He explained how his addiction took over his life. For a long time, the star of Hogwarts would isolate himself in his house because he was afraid of what he might say or do. Thankfully, he realized and addressed his issues in time. Today, he’s entering his sixth year of sobriety.
4. Demi Lovato
The beautiful and glamorous Demi Lovato struggled with a handful of problems such as eating disorders and self-harm, but addiction proved to be her worst enemy. The graveness of her addiction became clear after the release of the second documentary on her life, Simply Complicated. It was later revealed that she wasn’t clean during the shooting of this iconic documentary and often used to sneak into the bathroom on set to get high on cocaine.
Her relation with addiction is indeed a complicated one. The first time she tried cocaine, she was only 17. After being bullied for years, the 17 year old Demi was eager to “fit-in”. She started partying more often until things got out of control. Over the years, she’s been in and out of rehab several times.
Currently, she is working on sobriety and dealing with her eating disorders after her relapse earlier this year. Demi is receiving monumental support from fellow celebrities, friends, and family, and we hope that she can move past this setback and continue pursuing a sober life.
5. Mac Miller
Following an apparent overdose, the 26-year-old rapper was found dead on September 7, 2018. There was a lot of speculation about his death. Fans came up with various theories indicating that Miller committed suicide, following his break up pop sensation, Ariana Grande. But let’s be honest, an overdose has probably more to do with an addiction than a breakup.
Talking about his struggles with addiction, Mac Miller said in an interview, “I was not happy and I was on lean (Codeine) very heavy, I was so messed up all the time. It was bad. My friends couldn’t even look at me the same. I was lost.”
Furthermore, he blamed his initial reliance on drugs on the intense criticism he received from media and public after the release of his first album. In 2013, he told Billboard that, “A lot of the reviews were more on me as a person. To be honest, that was even worse. You’re 19, you’re so excited to put out your first album, you put it out—and no one has any respect for you or for what you did.”
The death of Mac Miller is a wakeup call for everyone around the world. This unfortunate incident acts to remind us that addiction is not a joke and that it should be treated like the serious, life-threatening matter that it is.
Celebrities can struggle just as much as the next person battling addiction. The best thing you can do is give yourself a wake-up call and understand that you need help. Don’t settle for a life ridden with addiction, shame, or guilt. You deserve to lead your best life, and Scottsdale Recovery Center can put you back on track to do just that. Reach out today, and learn how SRC® can help you find sobriety for good.
