Actress Eliza Dushku Opens Up About Battle With Alcoholism And Drug Addiction

Published on March 9, 2017.

Broadimage / Rex Features

From the outside looking in, a lot of celebrities’ lives seem much different than they are, and Bring It On actress Eliza Dushku has recently revealed her private battle with alcoholism and drug addiction.

Speaking at the New Hampshire Youth Summit on Opioid Awareness in Manchester, New Hamphsire, on Tuesday, March 7, she stated, “Something a lot of people don’t know about me is that I’m an alcoholic and I was a drug addict for a lot of years.”

The 36-year-old also well known for her role in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, continued, “I’m always going to be that, but the difference between me and an alcoholic or a drug addict that still drinks and does drugs is that I’m sober. I don’t drink and I don’t do drugs anymore.”

In her revealing speech she also revealed she has now been sober for almost nine years, and that her first contact with drugs was at 14 years old when she started smoking marijuana. “I loved the first time I took a drug because I loved the way it made me feel. I loved the way it made me not feel — I didn’t have to feel. It was fun — and I love it — until it wasn’t. Drugs didn’t love me. They didn’t love my family. They definitely didn’t love my friends that died.”

Dushku also shared emotional stories about how her drug and alcohol use impacted her relationships with her family which prompted her to get clean and has encouraged her to stay sober. “I remember my brother telling me he didn’t want me to be around my niece because he didn’t trust me. I’m a really good auntie today. But you know what? He was right. I’m a good person, but when I did drugs and I drank, I didn’t make good decisions… All it takes is one bad decision. You don’t have to live like that.”

She concluded her speech by revealing her sober lifestyle means she is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree in sociology and encouraged the students to reach out. “If you’re in trouble, all you have to do is say, ‘I need help. I’m a real badass and tough girl. It was the hardest thing in the world for me to ask for help and it was the most powerful thing I’ve ever done.”