Pete Wentz Talks Battle With Addiction After Ashlee Simpson Divorce
Pete Wentz recently opened up about his divorce from singer Ashlee Simpson, revealing that their split left him devastated.
The Fall Out Boy bassist, 33, was reportedly blindsided when Simpson, whom he was married to for three years, filed for divorce in 2011. He reportedly began abusing prescription medication including Xanax and Klonopin.
"I was probably physically and mentally addicted. It started from insomnia and anxiety from flying, then it spiraled," Wentz told Rolling Stone.
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"I felt like a loser already. I'd basically gone from being the guy in Fall Out Boy to being the guy, who, like, hangs out all day. I didn't see how I'd ever come out on the other side," he added.
Wentz shares a 4-year-old son, Bronx Mowgli, with Simpson, 28 and while he was able to overcome his battle with addiction after the birth of his son, he relapsed during the collapse of his marriage. The singer revealed that he began to suffer from bouts of paranoia due to the drug addiction.
"I was scared of everything. I thought there were always people listening to me. Like, I had my house searched for bugs. It was crazy," he said.
Eventually Wentz was able to seek professional treatment and he eventually agreed to clean up for his son.
"You're up in the morning, and you have to really be there," he said. "It's not like getting up for a radio interview. In some ways, that was superhelpful for my soul."
Wentz is not the only one who has raised questions about potential substance abuse. In 2005, a seemingly drunk Simpson was videotaped behaving erratically in a McDonald's restaurant, which led to questions about a drinking problem.
It was previously claimed that during her marriage to Wentz, Simpson was "reverting to drinking and going out, because she is sick and tired of her life," a source told Us magazine in 2011, adding that the alcohol was "an outlet for her unhappiness, and Pete is getting fed up."
