Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@steveo
Topics: Celebrity, Drugs, Health, Mental Health, Steve-O
Emily Brown
Topics: Celebrity, Drugs, Health, Mental Health, Steve-O
Warning: This article contains discussion of drug addiction which some readers may find distressing.
Steve-O has marked the incredible milestone of 16 years sober with eye-opening before-and-after pictures of himself.
Having risen to fame through his work as an entertainer and his iconic performances on Jackass, millions of people across the globe became fans of Steve-O and were keen to follow his life and work.
The star, whose real name is Stephen Gilchrist Glover, spent a lot of his time in the spotlight in the early noughties and 2010s, but much of that period was also clouded by Steve-O's addiction issues.
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In memoirs written by the entertainer, he recalled being addicted to both drugs and alcohol - claiming that at times taking so much cocaine that he was able to pull some of the leftover substance from his nostril and smoke it in a pipe.
In 2008, Steve-O's Jackass co-star Johnny Knoxville organized an intervention for his friend's abuse problems in an attempt to set him back on the right track.
The star has since gone through a 12-step programme, and earlier this month he celebrated the incredible milestone of 16 years sober.
He marked the occasion with a before-and-after picture shared on Instagram. On the left is an image from November 2007, where Steve-O looks pale and has large, dark circles under his eyes.
On the right a snap taken this month, showing the entertainer with a huge grin on his face, looking genuinely happy and much healthier than he did 16 years ago.
Alongside the image, Steve-O wrote: "It’s truly nuts that I’m celebrating a full sixteen years of sobriety today. It all began when @johnnyknoxville organized an intervention which saved my life on March 9, 2008.
"I cannot even put into words how grateful I am for my recovery… Thank you, Captain!!!"
Fans of Steve-O praised him for his amazing achievement in the comments section, with one person writing: "So proud of you dude. You inspire me to make healthier and happier choices. I truly appreciate it."
Another commented: "Congrats!! The secret to life…is living! I am 15 years sober myself from the booze and hard drugs that were killing me. You’re an inspiration to many!!"
In 2009, Steve-O was the subject of a documentary titled Steve-O: Demise and Rise, which featured footage of him doing drugs.
Looking back on the footage while sober was a harrowing experience for the entertainer, as he explained: "I watched a rough draft of it very early on and I reacted badly to it.
"When I saw the footage of myself doing drugs, I felt like I could see them, I could taste them.
"It made me crave them and as embarrassing as that footage is, that just seemed like another reason to get high. I couldn’t watch it; I haven’t watched it since then."
The documentary was ultimately completed 'without any input' from Steve-O, who said it was 'better' for him that way.
If you want friendly, confidential advice about drugs, you can call American Addiction Centers on (313) 209-9137 24/7, or contact them through their website.