Former WWE and TNA Champion Kurt Angle was a guest on ESPN's Dan Le Batard Show where he opened up about his well-documented substance abuse issues. Angle revealed that at one point he was taking 65 extra-strength Vicodins daily, due to issues stemming from his broken neck from the 1996 Olympic games.
“I was on a lot. There was no way I couldn’t get out of it," Angle recalled. "The only thing I could do was eventually go to rehab and try to fix my life again but I actually beat it on my own. I stayed in my house for about 10 days and didn’t leave, and I was able to get through the withdrawal effects and then I was put on another medication after that — a lower dose and then because I broke my neck multiple times, I went on Xanax too because I was always getting nervous. I was really having a lot of stress.”
Despite his success as a six-time world champion in WWE, the schedule and injuries took a toll on Angle. When he left WWE and joined TNA in 2006, that's when Angle says alcohol issues came into the picture for him. Angle was charged with several DUIs during his first years in TNA.
“I started drinking with my meds. Then I started manipulating my meds," he said. "I would save all of them for the evening and drink it with alcohol and it got me in a lot of trouble.” Angle was slapped with 4 DUI’s in 5 years during his time in TNA."
Angle says he tried tackling the substance issue on his own, but it wasn't until he went to a rehab facility that he got things under control.
"I tried to do it myself, but when you're that deep into that stuff, you can't do it on your own," Angle said. "You need somebody else's help, and I finally reached out and I did what I had to do to get it done.
"It was the worst seven days of my life as well. I went through detox again. That time it stuck. You can't do anything; you can't think; you're in constant pain; your body's shaking. You don't wanna eat; you don't wanna do anything; you feel like you're gonna die. It's the worst pain you've ever had in your life. And I went through it twice."
Angle has been working select independent matches since leaving TNA in January, and there have been several rumors about the Olympic gold medalist returning to WWE next year.
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