The famous actor Drew Barrymore has been very open about her childhood experiences and addictions and her journey towards sobriety. Recently she shared a story when she was 13 and was placed in a psychiatric institution. 13-year-old Drew was skipping school and stealing money from her mother’s purse and going to clubs instead.
She started spending her evenings in the clubs and used that as her escape mechanism to cope up with the unwanted attention from the public as a child actor. Her mom sent her to an institution where she stayed for 18 months until she gained control over herself.
In another story she revealed that she has been avoiding alcohol and hasn’t had one drop of alcohol for the past two and a half years. She kept private the reasons behind this decision and hasn’t shared the entire journey with her fans yet but she wishes to keep the details private.
In an interview with Machine Gun Kelly, also known as Colson Baker, they both opened up about their mental illnesses. To avoid the stress and the heavyweight of reputations, Barrymore started using cocaine to calm her nerves. When the news got out she became blacklisted in the Hollywood child actors lists which led her to attempting suicide at the age of 14.
“Say something kind to yourself”
The 46-year-old actress updated her followers and the media that her work has mentally drained her out and has now begun putting her mental health back to her first priority. She shares that her lack of sleep, unhygienic eating, and work stress have disrupted her balanced life.
Using the time of holidays as an excuse for a break she wishes to bring more positive changes into her life and find work and private life balance along with giving her kids the attention they need from a mother. She accepts the challenge of exercising and staying healthy every day and aims to start taking better care of herself and encourages her fans to do the same.
Perhaps it was the fear of going back to a rehabilitation center such as the psychiatric ward she was admitted to where she screamed and cried every day and they had to use restraints and medications to calm her down or the risks mental health puts on one’s life, we shall never know. But we do know that talking about mental health and raising awareness is just as important as other pressing issues like climate change or feminism.
Drew Barrymore and many other celebrities like her, who are willing to talk so openly about mental health have altered public perceptions about the stigma around talking about mental health. The truth is, all of us go through mental health issues at some stage of our lives. It’s only when we talk about them that we realize we’re not alone in this journey.
