“I was definitely addicted to alcohol, not shying away from that at all,” Tom Holland admitted mid-discussion with host and author Jay Shetty on the podcastOn Purpose with Jay Shetty. “Anyone that has a beer everyday has probably got a little bit of a problem.”
Holland is one of the most notable action-movie actors of the modern era—he’s the current Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and has starred in adventure-packed films likeUnchartedandDolittle. But even with this mega-fame, Holland prefers to keep to himself and doesn’t tend to share his personal life on social media often. Although he’s been sober for a year and a half, he has only recently opened up about his sober journey on Shetty’s podcast.
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Shetty talked to Holland on his latest podcast episode about a wide array of topics, including the actor’s sobriety. When he asked Holland about the challenges of staying sober and why giving up alcohol was initially “so hard” for him, Holland explained his journey. Here’s what he had to say.
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“It’s interesting; I didn’t one day wake up and say ‘I’m giving up drinking,’ I just, like many Brits, had a very, very boozy December,” Holland said about his sobriety. “Christmastime, I was on vacation, I was drinking a lot and I’ve always been able to drink a lot.”
He explained that his sobriety was only supposed to be a temporary reset, but he realized his dependency to alcohol early on.
“I decided to just give up for January, I wanted to do Dry January, and all I could think about was having a drink,” Holland admitted. “It’s all I could think about. I was waking up thinking about it, I was checking the clock … and it just really scared me.”
That’s when the actor decided to extend his sober journey, but he was still facing challenges.
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In order to prove to himself that he didn’t “have a problem,” Holland went on to extend his alcohol-free pact even further: If he could stay sober until his birthday, June 1, he could restart his relationship with alcohol. But once his birthday came around, Holland gained a new perspective.
“By the time I had got to June 1, I was the happiest I’ve ever been in my life,” he exclaimed. “I could sleep better, I could handle problems better, things that would go wrong on set that would normally set me off, I could take in my stride, I had such better mental clarity. I felt healthier, I felt fitter, and I just sort of said to myself, ‘Why am I enslaved to this drink? Why am I so obsessed with the idea of having this drink?'”
Since then, Holland has been sober, and he hasn’t missed drinking like he did when he started.
“It’s honestly been the best thing I’ve ever done,” he said. “I’m a year and a half into it now, [and drinking] doesn’t even cross my mind.”
We commend Holland for recognizing his poor relationship with alcohol and cutting it out from his life. AtEatingWell, we believe that alcoholic beverages can be included in a healthy eating pattern as long asdrinking is done in moderation. Holland shares the sentiment that while being alcohol-free is what works for him, he doesn’t plan on being a spokesperson for sobriety.
“If I can encourage someone to drink less, then that’s great, but I don’t want to start getting into the world of, ‘You need to stop drinking,’ because it’s not for me to say,” he explained. “I went on my own little journey. I’m really enjoying it.
“I can’t believe the difference that I feel [from] not drinking. I feel amazing.”
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Shetty then asked Holland if he had any advice for listeners who are looking to go sober. Here’s what he had to say:
“I really worked to sort of change my mindset. I really asked myself, ‘Why do you drink? Why are you drinking?’ and a lot of the time my answer would be to feel more comfortable in a social environment,” he said.
His solution? “I just put myself in those environments and would force myself to be there, I would force myself to hang out and go to a club, go to a bar, go to a dinner.” Holland can now enjoy hanging out with his friends without depending on a drink, and he happily prefers it that way.
For more information on drug and alcohol addiction or to get help 24/7, reach out to the free and confidentialSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administrationhotline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
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