Kelly Osbourne candidly discussed what led to her relapse, admitting she was in danger of falling off the wagon before she even took her first alcoholic drink in nearly four years.
Speaking with actor Dax Shepard, another recovering addict, on the Armchair Expert podcast Monday, the Fashion Police alum discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic chipped away at her resolve.
Osbourne, 36, spoke of her progress she was recognized for prior to her relapse, saying she did “everything” expected of her.
“I was secretary, I had sponsees… all of it. Like, I was Miss Program,” the British personality detailed, nodding to her 12 step program. “It was everything to me… For me, I got more out of the fellowshipping and being a part of it than I did [doing] the steps.”
As for what triggered Osbourne’s relapse, she reflected how the COVID-19 pandemic shut down her in-person AA meetings and forced everything to be discussed virtually.
“When quarantine happened and the world changed, I started to change too. I started to do the online meetings… I didn’t like them,” she confessed. “I got nothing out of it. They made me angry and resentful.”
“Slowly but surely, I stopped calling my sponsor. Slowly but surely, I stopped connecting with my girls. Slowly but surely, one girl relapsed and another girl relapsed and then all my friends relapsed,” Osbourne recounted, noting that she remained sober throughout all of that… until one day when she was sitting by the pool and wanted a glass of champagne.
Osbourne credited her new boyfriend, Erik Bragg, for making her realize she needed help, recalling, “He didn’t say anything. He just gave me a look.”
She said she called her sponsor the following day and signed up for therapy to get “back on track.”
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