Jessica Simpson admits alcohol ‘silenced’ her ahead of three-year sobriety anniversary
The mum-of-three admitted turning to alcohol as a way to cope with her crippling anxiety, but soon realised that drinking had the opposite affect of what she’s hoped for
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Jessica Simpson admits that alcohol “silenced” her as she reflects on her exhausting battle with alcohol and drug addiction that made her spiral out of control.
The singer-turned-designer, 40, first opened up about her addictive past in her memoir Open Book, as she admitted her issues with substance abuse began after she was sexually abused as a child by the daughter of a family friend.
The mum-of-three admitted turning to alcohol as a way to cope with her crippling anxiety and insecurities, but soon realised that drinking had the opposite affect of what she’s hoped for.
Speaking to SiriusXM’s Jess Cagle, Jessica – who has been married to NFL player Eric Johnson since 2014 – bravely opened up about the dark days which are now well behind her.
She recalled: “I didn’t even realise how much I was drinking and how much I was suppressing.
“I thought it was making me brave, I thought it was making me confident and it was actually the complete opposite. It was silencing me.”
After reaching an ‘aha moment’, Jessica came to terms with the fact that she just couldn’t avoid tackling her issues head-on.
She said: “It just ended up coming to a surface. I knew a lot of it was coming up, coming up and I couldn’t suppress it any more.
“The alcohol wasn’t numbing anything. It wasn’t numb anymore. I was just numb.
“I couldn’t even understand stuff that was coming out of my mouth. It didn’t sound like me.”
Jessica made the decision to turn to counselling for support, admitting that she “laid it all out there” to her therapist after bottling up a lot over time.
She went on: “My therapist was like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe somebody can cover that much trauma and fear and awareness. It takes people their whole life to discover those things.
“I really had to get back inside of the person that I am. When you do that self-reflection, it’s very empowering. It takes a lot of courage.
“I can promise anyone on the other side of that fear, that courage is so beautiful and it’s one of the most rewarding things and decisions I’ve ever made in my life, and I never thought I would have to make that decision.”
Her efforts to seek help and get better have made Jessica sober for nearly three years now, with the fashion designer approaching her third sobriety anniversary soon.
She even admitted that she has no desire to pour herself a drink – even during a pandemic.
She said: “It’s almost been three years, which is crazy. I mean, it’s pretty, it’s awesome. People are like, ‘Don’t you want to drink during this pandemic?’ ‘Oh my god, aren’t your kids driving you crazy?’
“I’m like no, I do not want to drink, like I have not wanted it…I feel like that’s a big blessing. Once I surrendered and gave it over, I never looked back and my husband did it with me, so that support was amazing.”
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