Lucy Hale details how she got sober after struggling with alcoholism
Lucy Hale has reflected on her journey with sobriety, after struggling with alcoholism for over a decade.
The Pretty Little Liars star has now been sober for almost three years, and has been using her story to educate others on the dangers of addiction.
Speaking to People, the 35-year-old admitted how her difficulties with alcohol began.
“Since a very young age, I always felt alone and misunderstood. So as a teenager, I found alcohol — which of course shut my brain off. Iit worked for me for a while, until it turned really dark,” Lucy recalled.
“With any form of addiction, you become powerless to this obsession. I definitely had to go through my own process of getting sober. It took many, many, many years, many relapses, many dark moments,” the actress continued.
Lucy then went on to note how getting cast in Pretty Little Liars affected her alcoholism.
“If I'm perfectly honest, without my career and without that creative outlet, I don't know if I would've made it. I think that show and my love of what I do was my North Star truly, it really gave me purpose, and still gives me purpose. But I was constantly in this cycle of extreme depression and anxiety while having to show up to work and be on. And that 'being on' fueled even more drinking,” she explained.
Reflecting on the moment she decided to get sober, Lucy detailed: “I made the choice on the morning of January 2, 2022 that I was going to do everything I could to get sober. I knew if I continued on that path, I would've lost everything I cared about. It was the scariest choice in my life, but also it's been the best gift. When I made that change, everything else changed.”
While Lucy confessed that sobriety is still “painful and uncomfortable”, she also finds it to be “peaceful”, concluding: “I have big dreams, big aspirations, but where my life is at now is just trying to be as present as possible.”
