Liam Payne opens up about 100 days of rehab and being sober for 6 months: 'I needed a little time'

Substance abuse, substance dependence and addiction can be hard to navigate and achieving sobriety can be an uphill battle. However, it's important to remember that there's light at the end of the tunnel and support available. Liam Payne, the former "One-Direction" singer, is opening up about his journey with sobriety and addiction. The English singer revealed in an eight-minute video on his official YouTube channel that he is nearly six months sober after spending around 100 days in a Louisiana rehab facility.

"I just kind of feel like I've got more of a grip on life and everything that was getting away from me. I just feel like I've got more of a handle on it," the 29-year-old shared.  Payne said he had to completely cut off from the outside world while away to focus on his recovery. "I just needed to take a little bit of time out for myself actually because I kind of became somebody who I didn't really recognize anymore. And I'm sure you guys didn't either. I was in bad shape up until that point and I was really happy to kind of put a stopper to life and work. I didn't have my phone for nearly 100 days," the singer added.

"I didn't connect with the outside world at all. Upon leaving, the hardest part was turning the phone back on because it was a little bit scary." Though the process "worked to a certain extent," Payne noted, "there were still little things that I had to deal with for myself."

He confessed to having an "ah-ha" moment at a Hans Zimmer concert in Dubai in January which inspired him to quit drinking. "I [was] watching this beautiful symphony, I was having a drink, and I thought, 'You know what, this isn't really serving me at all, I don't really need this right now,'" Payne recalled.

"It's the first time I've ever put a drink down and gone to someone else, 'You finish this, I don't need this right now.' And I haven't picked one up since, which has almost been six months, which I'm excited about. It's good. It's good to be in this position. I definitely don't need those things anymore. The party's over." Ever since then, Payne has "just been trying to get to know this new guy," he shared. "I'm very lucky, thanks to you guys at home and thanks to this wonderful life that I have, that I had a vehicle to do that, which is music."

Looking back on his past behavior through a new lens has also been part of the process of moving forward, such as a June 2022 IMPAULSIVE interview with Logan Paul in which he criticized his former One Direction bandmates. "A lot of what I said came from the wrong place. I was so angry at what was going on around me and instead of taking a look inwards, I decided to look outwards at everybody else and I took it out on everybody else, which is just wrong, really," he said.

Payne admitted to Men's Health Australia in 2019 that he found fame difficult at the height of One Direction's success and frequently turned to alcohol to cope. "It's almost like putting the Disney costume on before you step up on stage and underneath the Disney costume, I was pissed quite a lot of the time because there was no other way to get your head around what was going on," he told to the outlet. "I mean, it was fun. We had an absolute blast, but there were certain parts of it where it just got a little bit toxic."

After One Direction took a hiatus in 2015, he released his debut solo album, "LP1," in 2019. "My own frustrations with my own career and where I kind landed, I took shots at everybody else, which is wrong," Payne said. "So obviously, I want to apologize for that because obviously, that is not me. You don't really realize the impact your words might have on other people." His former One Directioners "have really stuck by" him during his time of need, even Zayn Malik.

Payne thanked his ex Cheryl and their 6-year-old son Bear for giving him "a little bit of freedom to go and get well in that moment because I had to." The singer sees seeking help as an opportunity to strengthen his relationship with his son. "There's no point trying to be a dad when you've nothing to teach. The time with Bear has been really, really great. He's growing up far too quickly. He's far smarter than I think I'll ever be. He's a wonder."

Fans look forward to seeing Payne on the road in South America "sooner than you think." "Am I scared? Yes, a little bit, 'cause it's kind of the only bit of performing that I haven't road-tested in this new frame of mind and not having anything to learn is quite daunting. But I'm sure I'll be fine," he said. "Famous last words." "Thanks for sticking by me," he wrote.

Watch the full video here: