Author: Alex Thompson

Eminem Bounces Back from 20-Pill-a-Day Addiction

He understood that he needed to shed this weight while finding another way to be sober. Hence, he resorted to running, which helped him experience a natural high while regulating his sleep at night. The singer acknowledged having an addict’s brain, so he simply recovered by replacing the harmful addiction with a healthier one. Still, after persistent reminders from loved ones, he decided to attend rehab in 2005 but dropped it because of an unpleasant experience. Em’s substance abuse escalated following the death of the rapper’s friend and D12 bandmate Proof in 2006, when he says his addiction “went through the fuckin’ roof”. Em recounts one point shortly after Proof’s death, when he fell over in his bathroom and woke up in a hospital “with fucking tubes in me and shit”, unable to talk or understand what had happened.

I literally couldn’t walk for two days when that happened and eventually my drug use fuckin’ skyrocketed. Eminem has been sober for 13 years, and has been in the rap game for even longer. In a new essay shared by XXL on Wednesday (Sept. 14), the rapper opens up about every step of his come-up, his struggle with addiction when he became famous and his future goals. According to the singer, his kids inspired him and gave him enough strength to overcome the situation and successfully head toward recovery. Eminem mentioned that looking at his children made him realize that he had to be present for them. Soon enough, he got serious about his recovery and started working with a rehab counselor while going through a highly uncomfortable detox program.

Eminem turned to running to deal with his addiction

His work is highly creative and includes brazen expletives and admissions that many people may find too extreme. However, this bluntness has helped the singer raise awareness in people about the dangers of abusing drugs. Eminem also starred in a documentary called “How to Make Money Selling Drugs,” where he talked about his struggles with addiction.

Eminem addiction first began when he started using drugs that many used to consider harmless since they were legally available. These drugs largely included prescription opioids, and the singer started using them as he was working long hours with very little time to work in between to rest properly. An acquaintance first introduced the singer to a pill that helped him sleep more easily, and according to Eminem, it helped him feel pain-free and relaxed. Shortly after detoxing, he suffered a knee injury that required surgery, but because of his drug abuse, he was not prescribed pain killers.

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In an interview with Vibe (via The Hindu), Eminem revealed that, at one point, he overdosed on methadone. A friend had given him the drug, which is used to wean heroin addicts off of the drug, and he would not have taken it had he known it was methadone. “[My] doctor told (me that) the amount of methadone (I’d) taken was equivalent to shooting up four bags of heroin,” he said. “Had I known it was methadone, I probably wouldn’t have taken it.” But, despite his overwhelmingly successful career, Eminem — like many artists before him — fell into the trappings of drug addiction. According to sources, Eminem tried joining a rehab to overcome his addiction-related struggles.

He rose to fame during the 1990s after the release of his second music album, The Slim Shady LP. While the world knows about his successful music career, not many may be aware that he is an addict currently in recovery. The ‘Recovery’ rapper speaks about his addiction to prescription medicine in a clip from the documentary How To Make Money Selling Drugs, which was released in selected US cinemas last week and is available via iTunes.

1. For some, his intense lyrics are fun and comical but can be relatable to many people currently in similar situations.
2. Following the pleasant experience with the pill, Eminem started using more drugs, such as Vicodin, to feel more relaxed at the end of the day and get better sleep.
3. Em goes on to recount one story from that time period, when he performed for BET’s 106 & Park with 50 Cent and G-Unit and was interviewed afterwards.
4. He rose to fame during the 1990s after the release of his second music album, The Slim Shady LP.

Eminem was eventually hospitalised in December 2007 following a methadone overdose, with doctors telling him he had ingested the equivalent of four bags of heroin. In a recent interview for manager Paul Rosenberg’s podcast, he discussed having to relearn how to rap following the overdose. When Eminem left rehab, he had gained a lot of weight, weighing up to 230 pounds.

Spending Addiction

In April 2020, Eminem celebrated 12 consecutive years of a sober life. Eventually, Eminem lost 90 lbs and, per Billboard, he weighs 140 lbs today. The lesson is particularly important for children who are xsquick to idolize celebrities. For some, his intense lyrics are fun and comical but can be relatable to many people currently in similar situations. Earlier this month, Em won a Creative Arts Emmy Award for his part in this year’s Super Bowl half-time show, taking him one step closer to EGOT status.

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The “Slim Shady” rapper shared his experience with addiction at the height of his fame. In an extensive piece for XXL Magazine, Eminem has offered a look back on his place in hip-hop and opened up about his struggles with drug addiction. In the piece penned for XXL, Em discusses the way that “everything changed” after he signed with Interscope and released his second studio album, 1999’s ‘The Slim Shady LP’. He describes how after he first relocated to Los Angeles, he and friends would go to Tijuana to purchase drugs such as Vicodin. He stressed that it’s important for rappers to study what’s going on in hip-hop, and that it would foolish for him to ignore what some of the best rappers out are doing. While Eminem succeeded in recovering from his addiction, his treatment involved self-detox, which experts do not recommend.

Eminem’s rise to stardom, back in 1999, made him a scourge of the syrupy late-nineties pop scene. But he also managed to alter stereotypes about the criminality of the rap genre in the eyes of the general public. He dominated the portable CD players of turn-of-the-century youth, who emulated his style by dying their hair blonde and donning tank tops and oversized pants. “If I had been black, I wouldn’t have sold even half of it,” he acknowledged in one of his songs.

While the singer did not resort to seeking a professional detox program, we now have many medication-assisted treatments available which help people relax and remain comfortable while detoxing from their drug of abuse. The “heaviest” period of drug addiction spanned five years of his life, and he hit a rough patch after his D12 bandmate Proof died. “I had fuckin’ 10 drug dealers at one time that I’m getting my shit from. Seventy-five to 80 Valiums a night, which is a lot,” he added. Early in his career, he said him and some friends frequently went to Tijuana, Mexico to purchase drugs such as Vicodin.

Eminem Reflects on Career and Battling Drug Addiction: ‘I Don’t Know How the F*ck I’m Still Here’

However, he did not like the experience as people around him constantly asked him for autographs which distracted him from focusing on his recovery. Consequently, the rapper preferred to self-detox and work privately with a rehab counselor instead of seeking formal treatment. The fear of experiencing psychological and physical pains related to withdrawals can scare many people from joining a rehab. However, Eminem’s life example proves that no matter how hard the process is, recovery is always possible and can positively influence all aspects of life.