A Backstreet Boys bandmate recently opened up about what helps him overcome his on/off struggles with addiction.
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While speaking to Fox News, AJ McLean reflected on his sobriety journey and what lessons he’s learned from his experience with addiction.
“I’m sober today,” he confirmed. “I can’t tell you what’s going to happen tomorrow. And I was sober yesterday. I stay in the now. I stay in the moment.”
McLean further noted that he takes everything in when it comes to his sobriety. “It is the age-old saying of stopping and smelling the roses,” he pointed out. “I actually physically stop and smell flowers. I have a different confidence – not arrogance, not ego – that I’ve never had. And it’s a confidence that is empowering.”
The Backstreet Boys bandmate noted that the confidence came from the work he has put in to stay sober and his ongoing addiction battle. “It doesn’t stop when you stop doing the work,” he noted. “When you stop spreading your experience, strength, and hope, reaching out to other addicts and other people in the world that may be suffering from whatever.”
“If you stop doing that, is when s— goes south,” McLean said. “That’s when the ego becomes the villain, and it takes over.”
The singer further declared that he doesn’t have another relapse in him. “It will not end the lucky way it has ended in the past,” he said. “When I’ve dodged bullets and never went to jail, never got a DUI.”
“I’m pretty sure the last time I did drugs, there was fentanyl in there,” he added. “I’m still talking to you. I’ve dodged more bullets than I’d like to.”
The Backstreet Boys Bandmate Previously Referred to Himself as a “Chronic Relapser” While Discussing His Addiction
AJ McLean previously referred to himself as a “chronic relapser” during a 2021 interview about his addiction struggles.
“I can do short bursts and I’m OK,” he said while appearing on the Recovering From Reality podcast. “Because even when I would relapse, I wouldn’t go on a bender. I am a chronic relapser, but I’ve never gone for like a month straight of just drinking and partying.”
McLean then noted that his relapse has been one night, and then he’s back to being sober for a week or two. He would repeat the cycle constantly. “It was always back and forth,” he admitted.