Steven Tyler Put Best Feet Forward in Rehab

Rocker says he checked into rehab earlier this month to recover from pain and exhaustion brought on by series of foot surgeries

By Natalie Finn May 29, 2008 11:28 PMTags
Steven TylerLester Cohen/WireImage.com

When in treatment, every day you just have to put one foot in front of the other. Especially if you need to "Walk This Way" night after night.

Steven Tyler has confirmed he checked into rehab earlier this month, but, contrary to speculation, the rocker says he was there to aid his recovery from a series of surgeries on his feet, which have taken quite a beating over the nearly 40 years Aerosmith has been doing its thing.

"The doctors told me the pain in my feet could be corrected, but it would require a few surgeries over time," Tyler, 60, said in a statement released by his reps Thursday.

"The ‘foot repair’ pain was intense, greater than I'd anticipated. The months of rehabilitative care and the painful strain of physical therapy were traumatic. I really needed a safe environment to recuperate where I could shut off my phone and get back on my feet. Make no mistake, Aerosmith has no plans to stop rocking. There’s a new album to record, then another tour."

Tyler did not say whether his sojourn occurred at Las Encinas Hospital, where Dr. Drew Pinsky ministers to substance abusers on Celebrity Rehab and where Tyler was rumored to be staying.