It was his kids that inspired him and gave him the strength to triumph over his situation and successfully go through addiction recovery. He said that when he looked at his children, he realized that he needed to be present for them. However, those around him slowly started to notice he had an issue.

  • Inside the black and gold circle, there was a triangle around the number 16, which symbolises the number of years that the father-of-three has been sober.
  • After 14 years of sobriety, Eminem’s monumental recovery exemplifies that persistence through hardship can uplift you and make you stronger.
  • However, despite his challenges, Eminem has been able to overcome his addiction and find recovery, celebrating 14 years clean now.
  • According to the rapper, if he made it to the hospital just two hours later, he would have died from the drug overdose.

Eminem is 11 years sober

Eminem decided to take matters into his own hands and go about sobriety a different way. He checked himself into a hospital to detox and returned home, while he attended counseling sessions in the privacy of his own home and began therapy. His weight went down to 149 pounds, which is what he walks around to this day. 8 and a half in the morning, before hitting the studio and another 8 and a half in the evening. One of depression, failing and addiction to prescription painkillers and sedatives. But it was his 1999 album, the Slim Shady LP, that turned him into an overnight superstar.

  • «My addiction didn’t start in my early days when I was coming up,» he explained in a personal essay for XXL in September 2022.
  • The family was poor and moved around frequently before settling in a primarily black neighborhood in Detroit.
  • It took Eminem a few tries in addiction rehab, some relapses along the way, and an overdose to get to where he is now.

How To Stay Sober This Cinco De Mayo

«It wasn’t like I was stumbling around all day,» he admitted. «I was fully functioning — I wrote more songs then than I do now. That was the scary part.» «I had what I call a white light experience where I saw myself either dead or losing everything that meant anything to me,» he continued.

“The doctors told me I’d done the equivalent of four bags of heroin. The Slim Shady rapper said he was searching for Vicodon, a prescription pain reliever he was addicted to, however was given a supposedly similar drug by someone, which eventually led to his overdose. In late 2011, he was hospitalized with pancreatitis and was told that if he didn’t stop drinking, he wouldn’t see his next birthday. «I still put it off and was trying to slow down on my own, like, ‘All right I’m only gonna let myself take two pills today. I’m only gonna drink this much of my bottle and make a mark on the bottle,'» he recalled. «And it would work a couple days—and then somebody throws a party.»

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He finally made the decision to get help because of his daughters. Following a short visit to rehab, a 2007 near-death overdose, and a relapse shortly after, he knew he needed to change. The Detorit-born rapper sought the help of a rehab counselor and has been sober since 2008. He credits his love for his three children as part of the decision to live a sober life and kicking his addiction to alcohol and prescription drugs. He is a proud father of a daughter, Hailie, whom he shares with his ex-wife, Kim. In 2005 Eminem entered rehab to receive treatment for his addiction to sleeping pills but relapsed just three years later.

The program follows a 12-step model that emphasizes the importance of admitting one’s inability to control substance use, seeking support from others, and making positive changes in one’s life. It took painful relapses and reflections before Eminem relearned how to rap without dependency’s grip. Through perseverance in rehab, clarity emerged after hits obscured by haze.

Let us help you start your virtually journey to recovery.

She said her friends at the time «kind of cosigned» her drug use and «it just kind of becomes this dark pit, bottomless pit.» But, during the pandemic, Cyrus said she was noticing challenges and felt she wasn’t emotionally present. «I was completely nodding off and falling asleep,» she recalled. «And unable to keep my head up or keep my eyes open, because I was so far gone.» «I am coming out that I’m an addict,» Jax shared during the March 4 episode of Bravo’s Hot Mic podcast. «I have substance issues, primarily with cocaine. It’s hard to say out loud.» The Valley star shared his decades-long battle with drugs in March 2025 after going to rehab.

In the summer of 2005, Eminem abruptly cancelled his scheduled European tour, citing exhaustion and quote “other medical issues”. But it was soon revealed that he had entered rehab to kick his drug problems. Over the next 3 years he released two more massively selling albums, establishing himself as arguably the most influential musician in the world.

Down the Path of Drug Dependence

Just after releasing his 2010 critically-acclaimed album Recovery he opened up about how his life started to spiral out of control and confessed to being hospitalized for a methadone overdose back in 2008. Eminem asked, “Didn’t you ask the doctors when I started recording new shit, when I first started rapping again, and sent it to did eminem go to rehab you, didn’t you say, ‘I just wanted to make sure he didn’t have brain damage? ‘” The podcast host confirmed that he was in fact concerned during the recovery process that there might be some “permanent problems” with his health. In 2022, the “Mockingbird” singer opened up about his experiences with drug addiction, confessing his loved ones were concerned he might have permanent brain damage after he suffered a drug overdose. He previously struggled with addiction to prescription painkillers and in 2007 took a near-fatal overdose of methadone that left him in hospital.

Despite losing nearly everything to addiction, he emerged refocused with tools to thrive in clarity. Eminem’s recovery brought profound challenges, including intense addiction cravings, cues from fame, and painful relapses. For years, he confronted demons threatening his renewed passion for music.

On «Jimmy Kimmel Live!» in March, Dr. Dre teased that the «Real Slim Shady» singer is working on a new album, «which is coming out this year.» «It was my decision to get clean,» Eminem raps on the 2010 track. «I did it for me. Admittedly, I probably did it subliminally for you, so I could come back a brand new me.» Eminem is a shining example of hope, proving recovery is possible. His story may be the reason someone chooses to finally ask for help. The family was poor and moved around frequently before settling in a primarily black neighborhood in Detroit.

In 2001, 2 years after becoming famous, his father attempted to reach out to him. But before Eminem shot to fame with his 1999 album The Slim Shady LP, his life was anything but smooth sailing. Actually, he is one of the most successful music artists of all time. Oh, and we’ll also tell you which music megastar checks up on Eminem regularly to make sure he stays on the straight and narrow.

It later surfaced that the amount he had taken was equivalent to 4 bags of heroin. “I got up to between 220 and 230, about 80 pounds heavier than I am now. In 2006, his close friend and collaborator, rapper Proof, was shot and killed outside a Detroit nightclub.

Not everyone has to do it the same way, however, and no one has to do it alone. Every individual can find something that works for them and their needs. In the 2012 documentary How to Make Money Selling Drugs, the rapper opened up about his struggles with addiction.