Welcome to the Very Well Mind podcast. We've interviewed over 100 authors, experts, entrepreneurs, athletes, musicians, and others to help you learn strategies to care for your mental health.

This episode is hosted by psychotherapist and bestselling author Amy Morin. Now let's get into the episode.

Okay. Do you have a habit that you know isn't good for you, but you keep doing it anyway?

Do you ever doubt your ability to make change?

Are there times when you think you just aren't normal? If you answered yes to any of those questions, today's episode is for you. Today I'm talking about self-destructive behavior, which comes

in many different forms. Overeating, getting into unhealthy relationships, compulsive shopping,

risky sexual behavior, overusing drugs and alcohol,

or anything else that you might do that causes emotional and physical pain on yourself.

It's often a cycle. You reach for something that helps you feel good for a minute,

even though it causes you to feel bad in the long term. My guest today is Ethan Supley.

He started in TV shows like Boy Meets World and my name is Earl and he's been in movies like

American History X, Blow, The Wolf of Wall Street and Remember the Titans. He was significantly

overweight during many of those roles.

He also struggled with an addiction to drugs and alcohol.

In fact, his health suffered to the point where doctors told him that he only had about a month to live.

But as you'll hear today, Ethan decided to make some changes.

At the time, he didn't make those changes because he had hope that he could live.

But instead, he just didn't want to die in the shape he was in because he didn't want to embarrass his family. But clearly,

Ethan didn't die. He got into recovery and took charge of his health. But he makes it clear that

he still struggles with a lot of the same issues in his head that he experienced when he wasn't

healthy, like self-hatred.

Some of the things he talks about today are how he managed to regain control over his life,

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