It’s been no secret that Eminem has had a drug problem in the past, but now he reveals just how he got over it.
Back in 2007, Eminem’s drug problem was at it’s worst, and he ended up in rehab. When he left he had ballooned to over 100kgs.
Speaking to Men’s Journal he said:
In 2007, I overdosed on pills, and I went into the hospital.
I was close to 230 pounds [104kg]. 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.
I was going to McDonald’s and Taco Bell every day. The kids behind the counter knew me – it wouldn’t even faze them.
Or I’d sit up at Denny’s or Big Boy [hamburger fast food restaurants] and just eat by myself. It was sad. I got so heavy that people started to not recognise me.
I remember being somewhere and overhearing these kids talking. One of them said, ‘That’s Eminem,’ and the other said, ‘No it’s not, man – Eminem ain’t fat.’ I was like, ‘Mother…….’ That’s when I knew I was getting heavy.
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.
One addiction for another but one that’s good for them. I got an addict’s brain, and when it came to running, I think I got a little carried away.
I became a fucking hamster. Seventeen miles a day on a treadmill.
So that’s how he became the real SLIM Shady. Doing a Forrest Gump and just running and running.
Fair play to him. He actively sought help, and fully committed himself to getting over his addiction. Admittedly, he replaced one addiction with another, but being hooked on running isn’t quite the same thing.
