Former Bachelor star Chris Soules is opening up about his sobriety journey.
“Health-wise, I actually quit drinking in August and plan to continue to do so for the foreseeable future, which is a big deal for me,” Soules, 43, shared during the Friday, January 24, episode of the “Almost Famous” podcast. “I’ve been embracing that. Hopefully, that will make a lot of things better in my life.”
Soules explained that he deals with “a lot of stuff to begin with,” including some “level of self-made anxiety” — and drinking did not make it better.
“Mentally, I’m just much more clear-headed, and it’s pretty astounding. I think it’s the longest I’ve went without drinking since I was a kid — a little kid — which is scary to me,” Soules continued. “Mentally, the clarity that you get from that and starting to work on other things, just meditation and things like that. I’m getting to be an old man now.”
The former ABC star said that he’s trying to “embrace” this sober lifestyle going forward.
“It allows me to be a better person to the people that I love. More there, more present, which is huge with my family and friends,” he continued. “Alcohol is just not really healthy for you. The more you learn about it, it’s just not good for you. It’s just the way of life for me for so long. To start to change that, it’s a sense of, like, accomplishment too, to be able to do that.”
Elsewhere in the podcast episode, Soules said that he started to drink alcohol “long before” learning how to drive. He further explained that drinking is “a deep cultural thing in the Midwest, especially in agriculture,” referring to his job as a farmer.
“It’s a cheap form of stress relief. It’s something that I’ve seen a lot of people struggle with,” Soules added. “I have myself. … It’s something that exists in a big way.”
There wasn’t one major event in Soules’ life that helped make his decision. The Bachelor Nation alum just felt like “enough is enough” when it came to his drinking habits. There was also a health aspect involved.
“I have a lot of responsibility in life and in general,” Soules explained. “It’s just getting to a point where the hangovers aren’t getting any easier. It became more of not necessarily doing it as much for fun, as much as you’re doing it as something to cover up just stress in general. I felt like I’m at a point in my life where [I’m] still single and still want a family, and I still have a farming business that I care about tremendously and want to see it through to build on.”
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