Eminem Celebrates Another Year of Sobriety After Battle With Opioid Addiction

In the 2013 documentary How to Make Money Selling Drugs, rapper Eminem (real name Marshall Mathers) detailed his struggle with addiction. "When I took my first Vicodin, it was like this feeling of 'Ahh.' Like everything was not only mellow, but [I] didn't feel any pain," he said. 

"I don't know at what point exactly it started to be a problem. I just remember liking it more and more."

The 47-year-old was taking upwards of 30 Vicodin (an opioid) a day, plus 40 to 60 Valium on top of that. However, the 8 Mile star has since gotten clean and recently celebrated another year of sobriety. So, how long has Em been sober?

Announcing another year of sobriety on his personal Twitter page, Eminem shared a picture of his chip celebrating 12 years clean. "Clean dozen in the books! I'm not afraid," he captioned the snap on April 20. 

In 2007, Eminem overdosed on methadone, which is an opioid used to help treat individuals with drug addiction. 

"The doctors told me I'd done the equivalent of four bags of heroin... Had I got to the hospital about two hours later, I would have died," he said in an interview with MTV. "My organs were shutting down. My liver, kidneys, everything. They were gonna have to put me on dialysis. They didn't think I was gonna make it. My bottom was gonna be death."

Following the near-death experience, Eminem tried to get clean, but relapsed "within a month." He explained to The New York Times that it was difficult to focus on his issues in rehab. “I felt like Bugs Bunny in rehab,” he said. “When Bugs Bunny walks into rehab, people are going to turn and look. People at rehab were stealing my hats and pens and notebooks and asking for autographs. I couldn’t concentrate on my problem.”

Eventually, the rapper decided to quit drugs and explained in the documentary that he wanted to be a father to his kids. 

"It's been a learning process, I'm growing," he said about living a life of sobriety. "I couldn't believe that anybody could be naturally happy without being on something. So I would say to anybody 'It does get better.'" 

After Eminem shared the personal message about his sobriety, fans were quick to comment and congratulate the rapper. 

"You’re an inspiration to so many people out here struggling everyday with addiction. You’re proof that anything is possible if you work at it. You motivate billions from all over the world who admire you. Kudos to you for fighting for your own life . We love u. You’re family," tweeted one fan.

Another person wrote, "Ay mad respect for this. This is freaking HARD. As someone who made it ten years sober, this is inspirational."

Congrats, Eminem!