Jamie Lee Curtis on the “Shameful Secret” of Addiction
How the actress fights the stigma surrounding addiction.
Earlier this week, Jamie Lee Curtis celebrated 22 years sober. In a post to her Instagram account, the actress wrote that “A LONG time ago… In a galaxy far, far away… I was a young STAR at WAR with herself.”
However, she continued, “With God’s grace and the support of MANY people who could relate to all the ‘feelings’ and a couple of sober angels…I’ve been able to stay sober, one day at a time, for 22 years.”
Curtis has been open about her addiction for many years. Her drug of choice was Vicodin, but I think that most addicts of any stripe will relate to her story. As a recovering alcoholic, I certainly did.
High-Functioning Addicts
Even at the height of her painkiller abuse, Curtis never fit the stereotypical image of an addict. She hadn’t lost her job, her marriage wasn’t falling apart, and she wasn’t struggling with money.
In a 2019 interview with Variety magazine, Curtis explained that her life was in fact just the opposite: “I was in a good stable marriage, writing books for children that were bestsellers. I was getting more and more work and more and more fame and attention and adulation.”
