Eminem Celebrates 10 Years of Sobriety With Inspirational Photo
Eminem is commemorating a full decade of sobriety.
The "Lose Yourself" rapper took to Instagram on Saturday to share the news with a photo of himself holding up a 10-year AA chip, which he received in recognition of his remarkable achievement.
"Celebrated my 10 years yesterday," Eminem captioned the photo of the metal token -- which features the traditional Alcoholics Anonymous triangle of unity, service and recovery, along with an X in the center, representing his 10 years of living clean.
The 45-year-old rapper, whose real name is Marshall Mathers, has been very candid in the past about the events that led him to getting and staying sober, most notably the time he accidentally overdosed 2007.
Speaking with Men’s Journal in 2015, Eminem admitted, "I overdosed on pills, and I went into the hospital. I was close to 230 pounds. I'm not sure how I got so big, but I have ideas. The coating on the Vicodin and the Valium I'd been taking for years leaves a hole in your stomach, so to avoid a stomachache, I was constantly eating — and eating badly."
"When I got out of rehab, I needed to lose weight, but I also needed to figure out a way to function sober. Unless I was blitzed out of my mind, I had trouble sleeping. So I started running. It gave me a natural endorphin high, but it also helped me sleep, so it was perfect," he shared at the time.
Celebrated my 10 years yesterday.
A post shared by Marshall Mathers (@eminem) on Apr 21, 2018 at 5:09pm PDT
The 8 Mile actor went on to explain that his "addict's brain" led him to compulsively running to the point where he was hitting the treadmill and jogging 17 miles a day. "In the end I got down to about 149 pounds. I ran to the point where I started to get injured. All the constant pounding from the running began to tear up my hip flexors."
Eminem eventually managed to get a hold of his exercise regimen and turn it into something healthier, but continues to use working out as a way to keep his mind sharp and his compulsions focused on things that are ultimately healthy.
The artist checked himself into rehab in 2008, and began the 12-step program that is the core of addiction recovery programs.
Recently, Eminem released Revival -- his 9th studio album and his first album since 2013's The Marshall Mathers LP 2. One of the tracks on the new album, "Castle," was as an apology to his 22-year-old daughter, Hailie.
In the 19-track album's penultimate song, Eminem recites three letters to his daughter, dated at various points in his life, including one from before she was born, one from around her first birthday, and then one from when she was 12 -- the year he nearly died from his addiction.
In December, Eminem spoke with Shade 45 -- a SiriusXM radio channel produced by the rapper that only plays his music -- where he explained how "Castle" addresses his overdose.
"If you listen to 'Castle' all the way to the end, you hear me taking pills and falling," Eminem explained. "That was, you know, the recreation of me falling in the bathroom, and then waking up in the hospital, not knowing what the f**k was going on. I had tubes in me, and I was angry, and I couldn’t talk."
The rapper also noted that "Arose" -- the album's final track, immediately after "Castle," -- ends with the sound of pills being flushed down the toilet, as an indication of his decision to get sober.
For more on Eminem's latest album, featuring several star-studded collaborations, check out the video below.
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