Mel B Clears Up Rumors About Her Rehab Plans

America's Got Talent star addresses weekend news that she is seeking professional help.

By Samantha Schnurr Aug 28, 2018 5:10 PMTags
Mel B, America's Got TalentTrae Patton/NBC

After announcing plans to seek professional treatment, Mel B is clearing up some confusion. 

The Spice Girls alum clarified her plans to enter a therapy program in her native Britain while appearing on The Ellen DeGeneres Show with guest host Lea Michele. In a preview of her interview slated for air on Wednesday, the America's Got Talent judge said her announcement got "a little bit skewed with." 

"I've been in therapy since my father got diagnosed with cancer nine years ago," she told Michele. "My therapy changed a little bit because I was in a very intense relationship, which you can all read about in my book," Mel continued, referencing her marriage and subsequent contentious divorce from ex Stephen Belafonte.

photos
Celebrity Rehabbers

"I do address a lot of those issues. But you know, no, I'm not an alcoholic. No, I'm not a sex addict," she continued on the show. "You know, I was with the same person for 10 years and that was quite a turmoil, very intense. That's all I can say about it. I'd like to say a lot more, but we're on this show—let's keep it P.C. But yeah, I address a lot of those issues [in the book] and I did kind of have to ease my pain...I do suffer a lot from PTSD." 

As a result, the star has decided to enter a "proper therapy program" in the coming weeks, as she told The Sun

"I've been working with a writer on my book, Brutally Honest, and it has been unbelievably traumatic reliving an emotionally abusive relationship and confronting so many massive issues in my life," she said in remarks issued to the newspaper. "I am being very honest about drinking to numb my pain, but that is just a way a lot of people mask what is really going on."

As her explanation continued, "Sometimes it is too hard to cope with all the emotions I feel. But the problem has never been about sex or alcohol—it is underneath all that." Mel B noted she has been at a "crisis point" and that she was recently diagnosed with PTSD. 

"I am still struggling but if I can shine a light on the issue of pain, PTSD and the things men and women do to mask it, I will do," the mother of three added. "I am working on being a better version of myself for my kids—whom I love more than life itself—and for all the people who have supported me."