Trigger Warning: This article contains references to alcohol and drug addiction.David Morrissey, the cult personality known for his roles in The Walking Dead and Daddy Issues, has candidly revealed how his terrible anxiety led to him becoming an alcoholic.
While the 61-year-old has been sober for 21 years, the director and actor admitted to self-destructive behavior after his father’s death.
David Morrissey talks about a horrific time
Speaking about his depression, Morrissey claimed he started drinking after his father died of a haemorrhage at the age of 54, when he was just 15 years old.
I wasn’t drinking to be cheerful. I was alone in the bar.
“It was very difficult and very difficult for my ex-wife and the people around me.”
David Morrissey talks about his teenage years
Leaving school at 16, the Sherwood actor said he spent six months traveling with a theater company based in Wolverhampton. “I knew that, academically, I would never be able to go to university or anything else — that it would never happen to me,” he said, adding that he had achieved success elsewhere.
Morrissey also discussed his marital situation, claiming that he broke off his relationship with his mother to gain independence.
“They say overdependence is a response to trauma. I tend to shut down sometimes,” he said.
David Morrissey comments on quitting alcohol
When Morrissey decided to give up alcohol, the actor remembered the person he had worked with in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). The “Gone” actor called him early in the morning and stated that the man had come around his house, and he had not been drinking alcoholic beverages since.
He added: “When I stopped drinking, I did not stop my alcoholism. My behavior was still self-destructive for many years.” As a way out, Morrissey went looking for acting and experimentation after watching an episode of the 1970s TV drama Colditz, starring Michael Bryant, who feigned madness in order to escape the situation. David Morrissey commented: “I’m much better these days, but for a long time I was telling myself I wasn’t enough and all that stuff, which fueled my alcoholism and inability to stop.”Disclaimer: If you or someone you know is struggling with alcohol or drug abuse, please seek help from available helplines or support organizations.
