25 Celebrities You Never Knew Had Addiction Issues (3 of 5)

Cory Monteith

Substances used: Alcohol, heroin, and marijuana

Cory was very young when he succumbed to his addiction. The cause behind his death was reported to be due to overdosing on heroin and alcohol. He got himself into the harmful habit at a very young age and even went to rehabilitation twice to get past it but was too deep into it to fight his urges.

When he was 13, he would bunk school and smoke pot or drink alcohol. The habit stuck with him all his life.

While giving an interview to Parade, he was sober during that period and talked at length about his past struggles with addiction. He said that he discovered himself after destroying himself over several years. He further added that he was very happy and enjoying his life and work after coming out healed from rehab. Sadly, he relapsed and could never recover fully.

Amy Winehouse

Substances used: Alcohol, ecstasy, ketamine, heroin, and cocaine

Amy Winehouse was another one of those celebrities who lost their lives due to their addiction.

She battled with drug abuse almost the whole of her career. Speculations were abuzz that she got overwhelmed with the media attention and started taking drugs to seek temporary respite.

Amy used many illegal drugs such as heroin and ecstasy and would even overdose at times. She had admitted in the past that she was dealing with acute depression and had been clicked several times in an intoxicated state or drinking heavily. Erratic behavior on the part of Amy had been reported as well.

When her condition began to deteriorate, she did seek help through rehab, but could not recover. She was found dead due to alcohol poisoning when she was 27.

Zac Efron

Substances used: Alcohol and cocaine

Growing up being surrounded by paparazzi’s cameras proved to have a huge impact on Zac. He told The Hollywood Reporter that he had almost all kinds of drugs at his disposal and he could not stop himself from consuming them and enjoying their after-effects.

He further added that he was drinking “way too much.” He was a young man in his 20s, single, living a Hollywood life with all kinds of intoxicating substances thrown at him.

Luckily, Efron understood what he was doing to himself and joined a rehabilitation center to quit all those habits and get his life on track. Although he now avoids such harmful substances, he was once quoted saying that fighting your addictions is like a “never-ending battle.”

Charlie Sheen

Substances used: Alcohol, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana

Also referred to by fans as the “bad boy,” Charlie can be an inspiration to anyone struggling to give up their addictions. He was given the tag because his habits of substance abuse were common news. For a long time, we openly did drugs, alcohol, smoked marijuana, and the like. In fact, there was an instance where he needed to be hospitalized due to getting a stroke following a cocaine overdose.

The good news is that he realized how bad his habits were getting and sought help. Despite several failed attempts, he kept on trying and is now fully ahead of his addictions.

It has been over 2 years now since Charlie has not given in to his old habits. He has his children to thank for taking him out of the messed-up situation he was once in. Sheen once recounted that he wanted to be there with his kids and made up his mind to fight his urges.

Heath Ledger

Substances used: Oxycodone, diazepam, alprazolam, hydrocodone, temazepam, and doxylamine

Heath Ledger’s outstanding performance in The Dark Night as the Joker is fresh in our memories. Soon after the shooting for the movie was complete, Heath was found dead due to taking an excessive dose of painkillers, anti-anxiety, and sleeping pills.

Kim, Heath’s father, told New.Com.Au that Ledger was not addicted to opioids. He only made a huge mistake by mixing several other kinds of drugs along with his sleeping pills and that’s what took his life.

The exceptional actor was only 28 and was doing remarkably well in his career when he was found dead in his home. As per some claims, it was the challenging role of Joker in the Batman film that impacted his mental health. Others believe that he could not recover from his separation from Michelle Williams and was depressed. The two had gotten divorced only some months before the tragic incident.