Former pop star Jessica Simpson celebrated four years of sobriety on Monday by sharing a decidedly unglamorous throwback pic.
“This person in the early morning of Nov 1, 2017 is an unrecognizable version of myself,” the singer, now 41, explained in the caption. “I had so much self discovery to unlock and explore. I knew in this very moment I would allow myself to take back my light, show victory over my internal battle of self respect, and brave this world with piercing clarity.
“Personally, to do this I needed to stop drinking alcohol because it kept my mind and heart circling in the same direction and quite honestly I was exhausted. I wanted to feel the pain so I could carry it like a badge of honour. I wanted to live as a leader does and break cycles to advance forward – never looking back with regret and remorse over any choice I have made and would make for the rest of my time here within this beautiful world.”
The photo was taken the day she told concerned friends she needed to stop drinking.
In last year’s memoir Open Book, Simpson described Halloween 2017 as her “rock bottom” because she was so drunk that she was unable to put her children into their costumes.
“I was terrified of letting them see me in that shape,” she wrote. “I am ashamed to say that I don't know who got them into their costumes that night.”
On Monday, Simpson reflected on her journey. “There is so much stigma around the word alcoholism or the label of an alcoholic. The real work that needed to be done in my life was to actually accept failure, pain, brokenness, and self sabotage,” she wrote. “The drinking wasn’t the issue. I was. I didn’t love myself. I didn’t respect my own power. Today I do. I have made nice with the fears and I have accepted the parts of my life that are just sad. I own my personal power with soulful courage. I am wildly honest and comfortably open. I am free.”