Lester Cohen/WireImage.comPeople were scratching their heads last month when Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler said he checked into rehab to recover from foot surgery.
Now, the 60-year-old rocker reveals that he was actually fighting a dependency on pain pills and sleep medication prescribed post-surgery.
"To have your feet done, to have your leg done, you have to be on narcotics. You have to be on sleep aids at night," he told the Associated Press. "I just put the brakes on and checked into detox and just pulled the plug on all of it."
The surgery repaired longtime foot injuries caused by 30-plus years of high-energy stage performances with the Grammy-winning rock 'n' roll band.
Tyler has been sober since 1986, when he went to rehab for drugs and alcohol.