Remembering Anthony Bourdain One Year Later – Addiction, Fame, and Mental Health
It’s been a year since famed chef and TV personality Anthony Bourdain passed away.
The star’s suicide has led to considerable speculation about the contributing factors, and the whirlwind of fame, addiction, and mental health struggles proved too much for Bourdain. Our Banyan Boca treatment team is remembering Bourdain’s contributions to many lives and exploring how mental health and addiction’s challenges may have been too much for the star.
Remembering Anthony Bourdain’s Contributions
Anthony Bourdain’s drug addiction was a major challenge in the chef’s life early on, struggling with heroin, cocaine, crack, and other addictions.1
After getting treatment for drug addiction, Bourdain began running New York restaurant kitchens, becoming an executive chef in 1998. Around the same time, Bourdain was penning books and articles about kitchens, cooking, and travel.
He also starred in several culinary-focused travel shows, including No Reservations and Parts Unknown. Bourdain is credited with inspiring chefs, TV personalities, celebrities, and everyday people to pursue the unknown and travel:
“Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.” – Anthony Bourdain
Anthony Bourdain’s Mental Health
In one episode of Parts Unknown, Bourdain traveled to Argentina to seek out psychotherapy, a type of mental health treatment used to help patients who are dealing with mental health struggles or emotional challenges. Bourdain, who described his own experiences with depression openly, ultimately committed suicide in 2018. It is likely that the chef’s mental health challenges were not properly treated, and he may have benefited from further therapy to help him overcome his mental health challenges.
Getting Help for Addiction and Mental Health Disorders
One key takeaway from remembering Anthony Bourdain is to remember that it’s never too late to get help. On the outside, Bourdain appeared to have it all: a successful career, the respect of his peers, a loving partner, and a child. Yet the star still took his own life. Mental health disorders and addiction do not care about how rich, famous, or successful a person is. The challenges will still be there, unless proper therapy and support is found.
If you or someone you love is struggling with mental illness, addiction, alcoholism, or several disorders simultaneously, help is waiting. Call 888-280-4763 to speak with a Banyan Boca admissions counselor.
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