Sanaa Lathan On Why She Quit Drinking Three Years Ago: It Dimmed My Energy & Affected My Anxiety

August 5, 2021 by C.J. in Film with 0 Comments

Sanaa Lathan On Why She Quit Drinking Three Years Ago: It Dimmed My Energy & Affected My Anxiety

Sanaa Lathan has revealed she gave up alcohol three years ago as she works to improve her physical and mental health.

She told PEOPLE,

“I stopped drinking about three years ago. Alcohol was not going well with me physically. Just, it was not working anymore. It affects everything, and that’s part of the reason why I stopped, because even if you’re going out a couple of times a week and you’re drinking, it was starting to affect me throughout the week. It wouldn’t be necessarily a hangover, but it definitely dimmed my energy. I didn’t feel as good. It was affecting anxiety.”

She added that what she learned about alcohol encouraged her to give it up for good.

“You don’t realize how over time it gets your brain out of balance as well. And the more I educated myself on really what it does to you … I have a mother who has never drank, and she’s probably the funnest person, the happiest person, because there’s this whole belief that you can only have fun with alcohol. I had to really reprogram that aspect, because it’s just all over in our culture. So, I haven’t missed it. My life has definitely become more of a morning life, but I can still go out and have fun.”

Sanaa Lathan opened up about journaling and other habits she’s embraced to help her handle stress daily, adding:

“I grew up with a mother who taught me about meditation so, I did it on and off. The reason why I came to this practice was several years ago, I went through a lot of trauma. I had a best friend who died suddenly. She was not sick. It was completely unexpected. I didn’t process it. I was in a shock type of situation.”

“I didn’t process it and just kept on being the strong girl, being a strong woman,” she says. “And then several months later, I started having panic attacks. I didn’t know what a panic attack was. Little did I know that it’s a real thing, and I would get three to five a day, even if I was happy.”

She said a doctor later told her she was suffering trauma that she “did not process correctly.”

“It’s when your body. It’s handling it.’ And he was like, ‘There’s medications, but you can try holistic things first.’ And I always tend to do the holistic thing first, before I go a traditional route. So I started [meditating], and as soon as I started, they went away. There’s so many benefits. And so, I’m a huge believer, a huge advocate.”

Sanaa Lathan, who stars in the Netflix thriller Hit & Run (slated for an Aug. 6 release), shared her gratefulness for her life’s work and artistry.

“I just feel really blessed to be on this journey, as challenging as it’s been, of being an artist in this business. I don’t take for granted the success that I’ve had. Yes, it has been tough at times. There’ve been times where I have wanted to give up, and yet, I am so incredibly grateful for just to be able to continue to tell these stories and do what I love.”

https://youtu.be/AyF-EQVs9mU

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