Colton Haynes decided to open up about his addiction and mental health through an important message on his Instagram account. On Sunday, he posted his photos from his hospitalization last year.
Haynes wrote, “Throwback. I don’t want worrying about if I look hot or not on Instagram to be my legacy,” he began. “I don’t want to skirt around the truth to please other people or to gain economic success. I have far more important things to say than what magazine I just shot for or what TV show I’m a part of (Although I’m very thankful I still get to do what I love).”
“I no longer want to project a curated life. I get immense joy when someone comes up to me & says that my willingness to open up about depression, anxiety, alcoholism, & addiction has helped them in some way. I’ve struggled the past year with trying to find my voice and where I fit in & that has been the most beautiful struggle I’ve ever had to go through. Worrying about what time to post on social media so I can maximize my likes or being mad at myself that I don’t look the same way I did when I was addicted to pills is a complete waste of why I was put on this earth,” continued the Arrow actor.
The Teen Wolf actor wrote, “I’m posting these photos to let y’all in on my truth,” he concluded. “I’m so grateful to be where I am now (a year after these photos were taken) but man these times were dark. I’m a human being with flaws just like you. If [you’re] in the middle of the dark times…I promise you it doesn’t have to last forever. Love y’all.”
He received great support from his fans and friends.
Serena Williams commented, “I’m so proud of you.”
“Love you so much!!!! Couldn’t love you more. Brave, Kind and the Real Deal you are my friend,” commented Lisa Rinna.
Brittany Snow wrote, “This is beautiful. [Love] you.”
In March, the 31-year-old revealed in an interview with Attitude Magazine that after completing a treatment program for four months, he was sober for six months,
He said that drug use and drinking had been a problem in his life for over the past decade; however, he shared that his real problems started in 2016 after coming out as gay. His problems intensified in 2018 when his mother died and he got divorced from his husband Jeff Leatham in less than a year of marriage.
Haynes told the magazine, “I fell apart. My brain broke. I was doing a massive comedy for a studio, showed up to work and got fired on the first day. They said I looked as if I had ‘dead in my eyes’, and I did.”
He went on to say, “I got so heavily involved with drugs and alcohol to mask the amount of pain I was feeling that I couldn’t even make some decisions for myself,” he admitted. “I was drowning in my own s***.”
“I locked myself in a hotel room at the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills for seven days and was found in my room with these insane bruises all over my body. It looked as if somebody had beaten the shit out of me. I couldn’t walk, so I was falling everywhere,” recalled Haynes.
He continued, “I almost ruptured my kidney, ended up in the hospital, ended up in 5150 psyche hold. I was on such a destructive path that I could not function.”
“I lost partial sight in my left eye for a while. I ended up having two seizures. I didn’t know any of this was happening until I was sober enough to remember it,” he added.
That incident pushed Haynes to seek help. Now, he does not shy away from speaking up about his mental health struggles. In fact, he would like to help end the stigma attached to addiction and inspire people who are struggling to seek help. Haynes told the magazine, “I’m always going to be in recovery. There are so many people struggling out there, but not a lot of them talk about it. Life is much more beautiful than I could have imagined. It’s just a different life now. It’s the best gift I’ve ever been given.”
