Kristen Bell talks marriage with Dax Shepard and life following his relapse: 'He is committed to evolving'
Kristen Bell is getting candid about her marriage with Dax Shepard and how they work through his substance abuse struggles.
Speaking with Self magazine, Bell, 40, shared that Shepard, 46, -- who announced in September that he relapsed after 16 years of sobriety -- was very forthcoming in coming clean.
"I mean, he admitted it so quickly. It was like, 'I did something that I don’t want to do. I’m going down a bad road. I want help. I want your help,'" she said.
The "Good Place" star revealed that her husband gave her "full... control’s not the right word. Full privilege, maybe, to call him on anything."
Bell added that her husband told her, "You can drug-test me whenever you want. I’m going to buy some tests. I’m going to have them in the house. If you ever feel nervous, I want you to have access to this and I’ll do it, no questions asked.'"
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She said that Shepard has "proven" to her "that he is committed to evolving and he loves personal growth."
"He’s just good at trying, and that’s all you can ask of anyone," she said. "No one’s perfect."
Back in October, the actress also spoke out about her husband's relapse during an appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show."
"I mean look, everybody's up against their own demons," she said. "Sometimes it's anxiety and depression, sometimes it's substance abuse."
"The thing I love most about Dax is . that he was able to tell me and tell us and say we need a different plan. Right?" she continued. "Like we have a plan. If he has to take medication, for any reason, I have to administer it. But he was like, 'So, we need a stronger plan. I was faltering and I have to do some sort of emotional work to figure out why I wanted to use again.'"
She then shared steps that her husband was taking to recommit to his sobriety.
Bell also said she and Shepard are in it for the long haul, during her interview with Self. "Do you want to be on the porch with someone when you’re 80?" she said, before adding, "We both want that."
Because of this commitment to one another, she said they attend couples therapy and remain open with each other in all aspects of their marriage.
"He can tell me someone he finds attractive, female or male..." she said, "it doesn’t make me feel like he’s going to leave me for that person because I’m not allowing my self-esteem to be affected."
"I know there are people on Planet Earth that are more attractive than me, and well, we’re not dead," she added.
