Zach Bryan Opens Up About Sobriety, Therapy, and Mental Health After Year of Public Turmoil
Zach Bryan has shared one of his most candid reflections to date, addressing the pressures of fame, the strain of recent controversies, and his decision to stop drinking and begin therapy. In a statement posted to social media on Tuesday, the singer detailed the personal challenges that led him to reassess his coping mechanisms and prioritize his mental health.
Bryan acknowledged that the past year had left him in a constant state of emotional instability, intensified by highly publicized incidents and the scrutiny that followed. His breakup with podcaster Brianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia unfolded across social media and fan accounts, prompting weeks of commentary. A confrontation at the Born & Raised Festival, in which Bryan climbed a fence to address singer Gavin Adcock, drew additional criticism. He also faced backlash from political groups, including supporters of former President Donald Trump and even the Department of Homeland Security, after releasing a song critical of ICE.
The musician said that, in an effort to escape the noise around him, he spent nearly three weeks traveling alone across the country on his motorcycle. What began as an attempt to clear his head led to a moment of clarity in a Seattle parking lot. “I really need some help,” he wrote, describing the realization.
Bryan connected the emotional turmoil of the past year to deeper, long-term struggles. After serving in the U.S. Navy for a decade before rising to national prominence as a musician, he said he never fully processed the transition from military life to sudden fame. “Being in the military for a decade and then thrown into a spotlight that I hadn't fully comprehended… had some subconscious effects on me as a person,” he wrote. That pressure, he said, created a cycle of “perpetual discontent” that he tried to manage with alcohol.
He also referenced a series of simultaneous personal crises that compounded his stress, including helping a close friend through a severe mental health emergency and supporting another friend who was placed in a coma after a motorcycle accident. At the same time, he was touring extensively, performing nearly every night of the week. The combination, he said, triggered “earth-shattering panic attacks” and periods of debilitating anxiety.
Recognizing that these patterns were unsustainable, Bryan said he made the deliberate decision to seek professional help. He has now been sober for nearly two months, a step he described not as a permanent commitment, but as a necessary reset. “For my personal clarity, I needed to be able to see the world objectively,” he wrote.
Bryan emphasized that therapy has played a central role in rebuilding a sense of stability and self-understanding. “I feel great, I feel content, I feel whole,” he said, adding that for the first time in a long while, he no longer relies on alcohol as a way to manage stress or emotional discomfort.
The singer also credited his family and his girlfriend, Samantha Leonard, with reinforcing his decision to confront the issues he had avoided for years. Discussions about the future, including hopes for children, helped him recognize that caring for himself was essential to caring for those around him.
Bryan ended his message by encouraging others to seek help even when they fear appearing “weak,” noting that vulnerability is often the first step toward meaningful change. “If you or any of your friends are too tough, too scared, or too stubborn to reach out,” he wrote, “know that the most stubborn person on the planet did, and didn’t regret it.”
