How Drake Bell broke his decades-long cycle of ‘self medicating, isolating’

Drake Bell spent most of his 20s and 30s self medicating and isolating himself to help deal with his childhood trauma.

During a recent chat with OK! Magazine, the Drake & Josh alum reflected on how he was finally able to break himself free from this cycle with the help of group therapy.

“It’s an incredible thing. You go through life thinking, ‘I’m alone in this, this is something I have to keep inside, I’m gonna be judged for it,” he recalled, adding, “Then you get into a group setting like that and share your story and it feels so good to get it out.”

Bell, 38, further revealed that some of his memories had been “locked inside and pushed down” until he started therapy.

“You realise the more you hold these emotions in, they affect everything and everyone around you,” he reflected.

The former Nickelodeon star also admitted that though it was “very difficult” getting and staying sober, once he did, “the hurt and pain start to get lifted [and] all of this stuff becomes a part of your past.”