'This huge storm has passed': Michael Douglas opens up about son Cameron overcoming addiction

There was a point in Cameron Douglas' battle with addiction where his father thought he was going to lose him forever.

"There were moments when hope dwindled … and then it’s just a train out of the station," Michael Douglas told People in an interview published Tuesday. "Life became a series of crises. I thought I was going to lose him."

The veteran actor lost his brother, Eric, in 2004 to a drug overdose.

Cameron said that he saw the damage the drugs were doing to his life, but he said he couldn't quit.

"It’s the sneaky power, the stranglehold that addiction has when you’re in the throes of it," Cameron told the outlet. "When you get that far down the rabbit hole, there are a couple options: there’s prison and then there’s death."

The 40-year-old was sentenced to nearly a decade in prison in 2010. He was initially sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty in connection with selling methamphetamine from a high-end Manhattan hotel in July 2009.

The judge added 4.5 years to the sentence after it was discovered that Cameron smuggled drugs into prison. He was released in 2016 and entered a halfway house before a judge told him in 2017 he could go to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career.

Michael told People that the longer Cameron had spent out of prison and sober, the more relieved he felt.

"It's like this huge storm has passed and the sun came out and you can enjoy your life again without looking over your back," he said, describing the "joy of having Cameron back … It's a wonderful feeling of being complete."

More: Judge allows Michael Douglas' son Cameron to move to Los Angeles

Cameron shares a 22-month-old daughter with his girlfriend, Viviane Thiebes, according to People and Entertainment Tonight.

This isn't the first time the elder Douglas has spoken out about his children.

In an interview published Monday with Entertainment Tonight, the 75-year-old "Kominsky Method" star said he gives "unsolicited" advice to his kids.

"I give a lot of unsolicited advice, which is not a great idea, but I can't help myself," he told the outlet. "With dating, you gotta decide at an early age if you are more concerned about the looks versus who's got a good heart, who's got a good sense of humor, who's gonna be a good partner."

Michael Douglas talks kids dating, shares advice from his 102-year-old dad, Kirk Douglas

He also explained that watching his children make friends with members of the opposite sex took him by surprise.

"My eldest (with Zeta-Jones) is 19, and they start like, 'Can I invite so and so over for a sleepover, a bunch of us?' " he said. "And they invite girls. … 'Wait, wait, wait, what's going on?' and he's like, 'Oh no, dad, they're friends. Come on, we're friends.' "

He also shared the best advice he ever got from his dad, 102-year-old Kirk Douglas.

"Whatever you do in life, just do it to your utmost ability," Michael said his dad would tell him. "Do it with full commitment, and then, screw it. If it doesn't work out, move on. But, you know, you left it with the idea that there is nothing more you could have done."

Contributing: Charles Trepany

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Michael Douglas talks son Cameron's battle with addiction