Jesse Metcalfe "definitely slipped up" in his sobriety journey after going to rehab almost 20 years ago.
The 48-year-old actor checked into a treatment facility back in 2007 to seek help with drugs and alcohol, but he admitted things haven't always been smooth in his recovery and he relapsed in the late 2010s.
Speaking on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast, he said: “I haven’t stayed sober the whole time, I can tell you that. But I am now and I’m in a great place now and I think that’s what matters most.
“If you’re battling addiction for basically your whole adult life, when you mess up and have a bender or really, really late night you feel like such c***about yourself. It’s never worth it.”
The Desperate Housewives star explained he turned to drugs and alcohol in order to escape the "pressure" and "scrutiny" he faced.
He said: “I’ve had my struggles with drugs and alcohol. Definitely a lot of pressure, a lot of scrutiny just kind of wanted to escape all of that.
“At a certain point it becomes not about the emotional underpinning of addiction. It’s just addiction. You know? Like if alcohol is around or if drugs are around, it pulls you.”
Jesse's relatives have also struggled with alcohol dependency in the past but he had grown up hoping he wouldn't follow in their footsteps.
He said: “I kinda was hopeful that it would skip a generation. I touch on the fact that it runs in my family, both my grandfathers were raging alcoholics. My father, who's sober now, has quite a bit of sobriety.”
The John Tucker Must Diet Die actor hinted at previous problems in his relationship with his dad.
He said: "I wouldn’t say it’s great, but we have a relationship. So, that’s a start."
As well as seeking help for his addiction, Jesse has also worked on some of his other issues and is a big advocate for therapy.
He said: “It was like trauma. It was like I was expressing trauma. It’s like I had a wounded little boy inside of me who was reacting to everything. I’ve done a lot of therapy. A lot of out of network therapy that cost me a small fortune because the good therapist they’re not in network.
“Therapy’s great.”
