Dax Shepard has revealed that he was molested by an 18-year-old neighbor when he was seven. The abuse was minimal, but the former "Parenthood" star believes that the experience contributed to his alcohol and drug addiction when he became an adult.
Molestation Contributed To Drug & Alcohol Addiction
The 41-year-old actor opened up about the molestation on "The Jason Ellis Show" on SiriusXM last week. Even though the ordeal wasn't extreme, it took Dax Shepard 12 years before he admitted it to anyone. Shepard said he was having "insane thoughts" for 11 or 12 years, adding that he blamed himself for the abuse at the time.
"I'm like, 'it's my fault. And I'm gay, I must have manifested this because I'm secretly gay,'" Dax Shepard shared. It wasn't until his mother, who is a court-appointed foster children advocate in Oregon, talked to him that he began to see his struggles in a clearer light.
"If you've been molested, you only have a 20 percent chance of not being an addict," Dax Shepard said, recounting his mother's words. "And I was like, 'Hmmm, interesting,' because in my mind I just like to f--king have a great time. But when you hear a statistic like that, I'm like, 'Oh no, I was going to be an addict, period.'"
Dax Shepard's Relationship With Wife Kristen Bell
Shepard started dating "Frozen" star Kristen Bell in 2007, Us Weekly reported. The couple tied the knot in 2013 and now has two children: Lincoln, 3, and Delta, 1. In an interview with Playboy in 2012, Dax Shepard said his hard-partying ways and substance abuse were a major issue in his relationship with Bell, who he described as "a good girl."
According to Dax Shepard, the 35-year-old actress was having doubts that he will change for the better during the first year and a half of their relationship. Luckily, he proved Kristen Bell wrong.
In an interview with Los Angeles Times, Kristen Bell said that she loves Shepard "more than I could ever articulate" and they are always committed to love and make each other happy. Dax Shepard has been sober since 2004.
Dax Shepard and Kristen Bell starred in two movies together: 2010's "When in Rome" and 2012's "Hit and Run." Just like a lot of people, the two are also fans of fantasy drama "Game of Thrones." To prove their love for the HBO show, the couple even dressed up as Daenerys Targaryen and Khal Drogo for Halloween in 2013, Entertainment Weekly reported.
