Eminem Celebrates 16 Years of Sobriety With Recovery Chip
Friends and fans shared messages of love and support.
Eminem marked 16 years of sobriety recently, and celebrated the milestone by sharing a photo of his recovery chip on Instagram.
The rapper didn't caption the picture, but friends and fans flocked to the comments to congratulate him.
"Sweet 16. So proud of you," wrote music manager Paul Rosenberg.
Eminem's brother Nathan Kane-Mathers said, "Greatest Influence and Mentor"
Supernanny Jo Frost wrote, "The most Sacred commitment to oneself,congratulations to you! And to you all here reaching different milestones & celebrations"
John Mayer chimed in with a simple pumped fist emoji.
A post shared by Marshall Mathers
A photo posted by eminem
Eminem has been open about his journey through addiction and recovery for years, sharing photos of several previous chips he received, such as the one from his 12th anniversary, which he captioned, "Clean dozen, in the books! I’m not afraid."
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A post shared by Marshall Mathers
A photo posted by eminem
On his 11th anniversary, he wrote, "11 years - still not afraid."
A post shared by Marshall Mathers
A photo posted by eminem
"In 2007, I overdosed on pills, and I went into the hospital," Eminem explained to Men's Journal in 2017.
"I was close to 230 pounds. I'm not sure how I got so big, but I have ideas. The coating on the Vicodin and the Valium I'd been taking for years leaves a hole in your stomach, so to avoid a stomachache, I was constantly eating—and eating badly."
He continued, "When I got out of rehab, I needed to lose weight, but I also needed to figure out a way to function sober. Unless I was blitzed out of my mind, I had trouble sleeping. So I started running. It gave me a natural endorphin high, but it also helped me sleep, so it was perfect. It's easy to understand how people replace addiction with exercise."
The rapper explained that he was eventually able to slowly build a more balanced relationship with exercise.
Speaking on Rosenberg's podcast in 2022, he said, "I remember when I first got sober and all the s*** was out of my system, I remember just being, like, really happy and everything was f***ing new to me again" (via People).
Eminem is one of many celebrities to bravely open up about their sobriety—including Lucy Hale, AJ McLean, and Cara Delevingne.
If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, you can find resources on the SAHMSA website or contact the organization's helpline.
Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.