Lucy Hale is sharing her struggle with alcohol for the first time in the hopes of helping other young people.

The Pretty Little Liars star spoke candidly about her experience with addiction on Thursday's episode of The Diary of a CEO podcast, revealing that this moment has actually been 13 years in the making. “I have never talked publicly about being sober,” she said. “I have a little over a year of sobriety. I have been working on getting sober since I was 20. I'm 33. It took time. It took patience with myself. I just held on to that belief that the real Lucy came out when she was drinking. It also quieted my mind…. My brain just doesn't shut off and it's exhausting. I was a textbook binge drinker, blackout, wouldn't remember what I did or what I said, which is scary.”

Hale went on to reveal that, ever since she first tried drinking at age 14, she knew she had a problem with it and at no point in her life has she been a “normal, moderate drinker.” The actor explained, “I was willing to go to this crazy dark place every time. Of course I tried to be a moderate drinker, just having two. I have an allergy to alcohol. I cannot drink. I view it as an allergy. My brain doesn't work the same way as someone who can just have a glass of wine. It always wants more. It's craving that feeling.”

The podcast's host, Steven Bartlett, then asked whether anyone in her life ever gave her an ultimatum or tried to stage an intervention because of her behavior around alcohol. “I tried to change for boyfriends, I tried to change for my mum, I tried to change for my career, I tried to change for vain reasons—‘I'll look younger and look skinnier. I'll stop drinking for that,’” Hale said. “One of my best friends died of alcoholism and that still didn't make me want to get sober. None of that shit works. Alcohol isn't the problem. The problem is this feeling inside of me.” It wasn't until Hale made her own decision that she needed to get sober that everything started to change. She explained that she finally made the commitment to herself on January 2, 2022, after realizing that she “deserves more out of this life.” The actor added that after almost two decades of heavy drinking, the last year has felt “freeing” and “peaceful.”

Last week Lucy Hale celebrated her one-year sober anniversary on Instagram with a cake, writing in the caption, “Bear with me, this is an alternative Valentine’s Day post. This is a post about self-love and about the greatest thing I’ve ever done. On January 2, 2023, I celebrated one year of sobriety.” She continued, “While this journey has mostly been private, I felt compelled tonight to let anyone who is struggling know that you are not alone and you are loved.”

This article first appeared on Vanity Fair.

Originally Appeared on Glamour