Summary

• Drew Barrymore embraced her troubled past, finding inspiration and meaning in her experiences to shape her parenting journey.
• Close friend Cameron Diaz supported Barrymore through her addiction struggles, emphasizing the importance of unwavering support.
• Barrymore aims to use her history of addiction to connect with others going through difficult times, promoting transparency and empathy.

Actress Drew Barrymore is one of the most beloved celebrities on the planet. However, her stardom did not come without struggles.

After gaining fame as a child actress, the Charlie’s Angels star developed a drinking problem at the age of 11. By the age of 12, she had started using illegal substances. The following year, she entered a rehab facility after numerous mental health struggles. Although she worked to get clean, she relapsed in 2016 when her third marriage to ex-husband Will Kopelman failed. The divorce came shortly after Barrymore decided to put her career on hold to raise her two daughters: Olive and Frankie.

Yet despite all the turmoil, Drew doesn't find her difficult past sad. Instead, she found inspiration in those experiences (and the support of celeb friends) and has moved on in an empowering way.

Drew Barrymore Doesn’t Find ‘Sadness’ In Her Past Substance Use

Drew Barrymore has found meaning in her past substance use

The 50 First Dates actress has found meaning in her past substance use and intends to use it to help her become a better parent to her own children. While talking to People Magazine, Drew Barrymore said that she doesn’t “see sadness or tragedy” when she looks back at her past.

"I love that I was a walking cautionary tale because then when we talk about how we raise our kids in a world where they're all out there in social media,” she told the publication.

“We all have to be almost parents in the mindset of what the Hollywood parents were like, which is: Do I want to protect my child, or what are the boundaries? What should I be teaching them? We're all rowing in that boat."

The veteran actress has a long history with the magazine. For one issue, she made the cover when she was only 13. She did the entire 1989 interview while inside a rehab treatment facility, which she now describes as “very empowering.”

Close Friend Cameron Diaz Was Concerned About Drew's Past Substance Use

Close friends of Drew Barrymore said it was difficult to watch her succumb to addiction

Many of the Scream actress’ close friends and family have recalled watching her struggle in various interviews throughout their own careers. Cameron Diaz opened up about their relationship for a profile on Barrymore.

The Shrek voice actress recalled how it was “difficult to watch” Drew Barrymore turn to alcohol after her third divorce in 2016. She explained how, in addition to losing her longtime therapist, Barrymore also lost some of her closest friends as she once again found herself succumbing to addiction.

However, Diaz told the outlet that she always knew that “if we all stuck with her and gave her the support she needed, she would find her way.” She went on to say that she had “absolute faith” in Barrymore, adding, “You can't even comprehend how hard it was to be her as a child, and then she shot out the other end with the ability to save herself.”

Although Diaz managed to save her friendship with the mother-of-two, Drew Barrymore made Brooke Shields uncomfortable when “denying” that her mother had been “exploiting” her during an emotional interview about their childhood experiences.

Drew Barrymore Wants To Use Her Experiences To Navigate Parenthood

Drew Barrymore wants to use her childhood experiences to shape her relationship with her daughters

While speaking to People Magazine, the The Drew Barrymore Show host reflected on being a parent to her own two daughters Olive and Frankie.

While Drew Barrymore fears the day her daughters will find out about her wild past, she said that parenthood is like a “beautiful little merit badge, like a scout's honor to get into that conversation and know how to navigate that as a parent myself.”

Drew Barrymore was famously emancipated from her parents at 14, which may be why she is focused on learning from her past mistakes and doing right by her own children.

In addition to helping her children, she also wants to use her past in order to help others through their own struggles, whatever those may be.

“There might be another [low point] down the road. It's okay. You will get through it,” she told People. “You might not do it on your own. You might do it by reaching out and you might do it by daring to be so honest that you feel so naked and almost flipped out about, ‘What did I just say? Or what did I just put out there? I can't take it back now.’ Let that be a liberation that is invitational to other people to not feel bad when they're going through it.”

She recognized that, even though not everyone will fall to addiction, suffering is universal. “When was the last time you met someone and they were like, ‘Yeah, I've never had a problem in my life, never went through a low point or a bad thing or had to learn a hard lesson or was embarrassed or did something I regretted'? Nobody,” she said.

“And if they're saying that, they're either lying or I'm very afraid [for them] because something's coming down the pike.”

The Never Been Kissed actress went on to say, “We all go through so much tender, difficult stuff in life, so if we're able to be transparent about that... I know I feel so much better if someone shares their story.”