Drew Barrymore says she turned to alcohol after divorce before finding 'real happiness'

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Drew Barrymore is finding happiness after the "crippling painful" years that followed her divorce from Will Kopelman in 2016. Barrymore, 47, said People in an interview published Tuesday that she felt devastated after divorce because she wanted to have a close-knit family with their kids Olive, 10, and Frankie, 8.

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She and Kopelman also had an amiable divorce, which she described as "cleaner" but also "harder and more confused" for her. The actress relocated from California to New York to be closer to her ex-family.

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husband's Initially, Barrymore stated that the transition "took me down." "I broke," she said, despite her strength. To cope, she returned to an old addiction from her youth: booze. "I was just trying to dull the pain and feel good—and booze certainly achieved that for me,"

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 the talk show host explained. "For me, drinking was a constant, as if to say, 'You cannot change. You are weak and incapable of doing what is best for yourself. You keep thinking you'll master this thing, and it's getting the best of you.

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Barrymore ultimately realised she was putting so much effort into protecting her children that she wasn't taking care of herself. "It was a filthy, difficult, excruciating walk through the fire and back to life type of trajectory," she recalled.

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After realising this, the "Charlie's Angels" actress returned to treatment, quit drinking, and focused on her daytime TV show, "The Drew Barrymore Show," which premieres in 2020. "It was my kids who made me feel like it was game time," Barrymore explained to the publication. Barrymore ultimately realised she still had a family unit with Kopelman and his wife, Alexandra Michler.

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We have an amazing family dynamic that indicates life goes on," she remarked. "The nice thing is that we still have the dream after all these years. It's just not the one I promised would be the situation."

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With her life's ups and downs, Barrymore told People, "This is the most authentic bliss I've ever felt." (Happiness) is an option. You must work for it. Some days are difficult to get to. And so, after you've harnessed it, it seems like a much sweeter win "She reached a conclusion.

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In an interview with Willie Geist of "Today" in October 2020, Barrymore discussed the most difficult element of her divorce. As a former child actor, she understands that "from not growing up with any family whatsoever, it was the last thing I wanted to do for my kids."

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Though Barrymore has been open about her challenges being the daughter of two renowned actors, Jaid and John Drew Barrymore, she hopes her children may still experience "this great family" despite their divorce being widely documented.

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I believe that's why I took it so hard," she explained to Geist. "I was like, 'Ugh, the ultimate promise I wanted to make with (Kopelman) and for (him) was to have this great family, and I found them, and there's something not functioning that's not acceptable.

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However, she said that it was not always easy for her to speak up about her personal issues. "It took five years for me to be able to talk with strength, articulation, perspective, retrospect, and recognise

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all we did correctly," she explained. "Because everything seemed to be going wrong while we were getting divorced. I believe it relates to everybody who believes something will last forever when it is not.

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