Elton John is celebrating almost three decades of sober living.
The 72-year-old music icon took to Instagram to mark the milestone, sharing a photo of his Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) sobriety coin as he reflected on how far he’s come.
“Twenty-nine years ago today, I was a broken man,” he wrote. “I finally summoned up the courage to say 3 words that would change my life: “I need help.’
“Thank you to all the selfless people who have helped me on my journey through sobriety. I am eternally grateful. Elton xo.”
The coin was inscribed with the AA motto, “Unity, Service, and Recovery,” alongside the organisation’s saying: “To thine own self be true.”
Elton’s well-documented battle with drug and alcohol addiction has been highlighted in the box office hit movie Rocketman, which chronicles the Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me star’s journey from obscurity to worldwide acclaim. And the star told Entertainment Tonight his celebrated Dodger Stadium concerts in Los Angeles in 1975 “saved his life”, and made him realise his substance abuse was out of control.
“Two days before Dodger Stadium, I was having my stomach pumped,” the star recalled. “I took an overdose and there I was, two days later, at Dodger Stadium with Cary Grant and Billie Jean King having the time of my life.
“That’s what you do (when) you’re a performer and that’s what saved my life – being a performer.”