Jessica Simpson reportedly cried after seeing the support she received on social media after she shared a photo from the beginning of her sobriety journey.
Last week, the I Wanna Love You Forever singer uploaded a photo to Instagram where she could be seen sitting on a sofa in a pink tracksuit while looking down at the ground. In the accompanying caption, the 41-year-old explained that the image represented the moment she had decided to quit drinking alcohol.
Simpson received an outpouring of support for the emotional post, including from the likes of Chelsea Handler, Kyle Richards, and Jaimie Alexander. Now, a source close to Simpson told People that it caused her to spend "half the day crying".
"It was very real for her," a friend told the publication. "She spent half the day crying. It meant so much to her to hear from people, hear their stories, and know that she helped even one person."
In her statement, Simpson reflected on how she didn't recognise the person in the picture, which was taken on the morning of 1 November 2017.
"I had so much self-discovery to unlock and explore. I knew in this very moment I would allow myself to take back my light, show victory over my internal battle of self-respect, and brave this world with piercing clarity," she began. "Personally, to do this I needed to stop drinking alcohol because it kept my mind and heart circling in the same direction and quite honestly, I was exhausted. I wanted to feel the pain so I could carry it like a badge of honor. I wanted to live as a leader does and break cycles to advance forward - never looking back with regret and remorse over any choice I have made and would make for the rest of my time here within this beautiful world."
Simpson explained that the past four years have flown by, and the journey wasn't just about accepting that she had been relying on alcohol, but addressing other issues in her personal life.
"The drinking wasn't the issue. I was. I didn't love myself. I didn't respect my own power. Today I do. I have made nice with the fears and I have accepted the parts of my life that are just sad. I own my personal power with soulful courage. I am wildly honest and comfortably open. I am free," the mother-of-three concluded.
