Lucy Hale says she was a 'textbook binge drinker' who had a 'problem' with alcohol from when she was 14 until she got sober last year
Joel C Ryan / Invision / AP
- Lucy Hale described her painful, decade-long journey to sobriety during a recent interview.
- "I was a textbook binge drinker, blackout, wouldn't remember what I did or what I said," she said.
- Hale celebrated one year of sobriety in January.
Lucy Hale's journey to sobriety has been a decade in the making, the actor recently revealed during an emotional podcast episode of "Diary of a CEO."
The "Pretty Little Liars" star said that she had been "working on getting sober since she was 20," adding she had a drinking "problem" after she first tried alcohol at age 14.
"I just held on to that belief that the real Lucy came out when she was drinking," she said. "It also quieted my mind. My brain just doesn't shut off and it's exhausting. I was a textbook binge drinker, blackout, wouldn't remember what I did or what I said, which is scary."
Added Hale: "I was willing to go to this crazy dark place every time. Of course, I tried to be a moderate drinker, just having two. I have an allergy to alcohol. I cannot drink. I view it as an allergy. My brain doesn't work the same way as someone who can just have a glass of wine. It always wants more."
Hale eventually "tried to change" for her career, her mom, and her boyfriends and "vain reasons," but she ultimately had to "want to get sober" for the choice to stick in January 2022.
"I said, 'I deserve more out of this life,'" she said, recalling many times she hit "emotional rock bottoms."
"I have to try it a different way," Hale recalled.
One week prior to her interview, Hale surprised her Instagram followers with news that she celebrated her one-year anniversary of sobriety on January 2.
"This is a post about self-love and about the greatest thing I've ever done," read the caption on Hale's Instagram post. "On January 2, 2023, I celebrated one year of sobriety. While this journey has mostly been private, I felt compelled tonight to let anyone who is struggling know that you are not alone and you are loved."