With Arms Wide Open: Scott Stapp Credits Family for Bringing Him Back from the Brink Following 2014 Meltdown
His personal battles have been made very public. Those with alcohol abuse, those with drug addiction, those with bipolar disorder. It's almost impossible to discern the steps that led the former Creed frontman Scott Stapp to what he would call "rock bottom," but it is clear to him what brought him back from the brink.
His family.
"It's been the only thing in my life that has given me purpose to fight the demons, and to keep going on," Stapp tells PEOPLE, flanked by his wife, Jaclyn, and children Milan and Daniel as they attend the Nickelodeon 2016 Kids' Choice Awards in Inglewood, California, on Saturday. "Without their love, and without these kids here, there were times when I just didn't know whether to go on anymore."
It was only in December of 2014 when the singer released a video claiming that he was destitute, without money, near homeless and "under some kind of pretty vicious attack."Â
He had run-ins with law enforcement, thoughts of suicide, issues with drugs and drinking.Â
"A couple of years ago when I really hit bottom, and realized that I was dealing with more than just addiction, and fighting bipolar [disorder], untreated," the 42-year-old says. "That was a huge turning point for me, and then coming to the place where I almost lost my family. That was really an eye-opener, and it put me in a position where I'd be willing to do anything for that not to happen. And that's really where you've got to be to make changes in your life."
Following his bipolar disorder diagnosis, Stapp reconciled with his family and is even serving as the baseball coach to his kids' little league team.
"I'm in recovery, I'm sober, and really experiencing life all over again for the first time," he says. "It's an exciting time and it's good to feel, and to be able to share this with my family."
