Jax Taylor opened up about his cocaine addiction and decision to quit drugs and alcohol in an interview on Wednesday.
Ahead of the season two premiere of The Valley, which is expected to chronicle his back-to-back visits to rehab and the end of his marriage to Brittany Cartwright, 35, Jax, 45, confirmed when he hit rock bottom as he explained his decision to go public with his substance abuse struggles, revealed what Brittany did that made him collapse, and explained the thong Brittany discovered in their home.
“It’s really embarrassing, especially at this stage of my life being a father, being 45 years old, but I wanted it to come out of my mouth … I’m fresh out of rehab. I’m doing the therapy. This is a good place,” Jax declared to Us Weekly on March 26. “I don’t really care what people think — this is more for me and for my son. Seeing that I’m doing this, hopefully other people can come out and say they’re struggling with issues too.”
At around 110 days sober, Jax said that because his drinking often fueled his drug use, he had to “quit both” — and he’s not looking back.
“I know for a fact I’ll never touch it again. People are like, ‘Well, you don’t know.’ No. I know,” he insisted. “I’m probably the healthiest I’ve ever been, I feel the best I’ve ever been. And I don’t put myself in situations I’m not comfortable with.”
While Jax owns a bar, where he frequently hosts events, he described himself as “very strong” as he vowed to stay sober and noted that a new medication to treat his bipolar disorder is helping.
“Since I’ve been on that, I let things roll off my back. I don’t go nuts like I used to,” he explained.
Looking back at the moments in which he spiraled amid his split from Brittany, Jax said his rock bottom was when his wife left him in early 2024.
“I was in my house by myself for months. I wasn’t eating. I was drinking and doing enough cocaine to kill a small horse. I went on a full-on tear. I was so depressed. I felt like I lost everything,” he shared.
Then, he found out about Brittany’s short-lived romance with Julian Sensley, which he described as a “serious slap in the face.”
“I brought this person into my circle! When I found out, I collapsed,” he recalled, noting that his drug use got even worse after his and Brittany’s divorce proceedings began, leading him to a second rehab stint in late 2024.
“I relapsed shortly after my first stay [in July] and in November. Brittany’s phone was plugged into my car, I saw another man’s name and lost it,” he revealed. “Unfortunately, my son was in the car. I had flashes of everything you’re not supposed to do as a parent. She was like, he needs to go back. I didn’t put up a fight.”
In the trailer for the upcoming episodes of The Valley, Brittany is seen finding a thong on the bathroom counter of her and Jax’s marital home, leading viewers to consider cheating. However, as Jax explained, the two of them had already split, and he had been hooking up with other women.
“What is the difference if there’s underwear there or not?” he asked, explaining that he was awarded the token amid a bar crawl.
“Girls sometimes leave us with things. And that’s what that was,” he shared.
As for his current dating life, Jax said it is “nonexistent.”
“It’s not a priority. I don’t think I’m mentally there yet. I’ve got a lot of work to do. I need to be good for myself and my son before I can be good for anybody else,” he reasoned.
According to Jax, he “could probably buy a house for the amount of money [he] spent on drugs.”
“It’s sickening to me,” he confessed.
Luckily, Jax has since come to his senses, crediting son Cruz, 3, as his motivation.
“I’m only here right now because of him. He’s the light of my life, my everything, my angel, my heartbeat,” he gushed.
As for his hopes for the child, Jax continued, “I want my son to talk about whatever he wants to talk about. Let’s be open. It’s OK not to be OK. I just couldn’t take the weight anymore. The pressure. I don’t want my son to feel like that. I want him to be open and honest. I will never judge him at all. I’ll be his biggest cheerleader.”
Although Brittany shaded Jax for his behavior on The Valley, saying Cruz cannot grow up to be like him, Jax credited her aggression to hurt.
“She was throwing daggers. There were scenes I couldn’t even get through; I had to walk out because I was crying. I deserve a lot of it, but some of the things she said just gutted me,” he admitted. “I will never talk negatively about Brittany, but I’m angry with some of the things she’s done. It takes two to fight.”
He added, “If it was so bad all these years, why did she stay? Why did she ask me to have another kid last year?”
Following the reveal of Jax’s drug addiction weeks ago, Brittany expressed skepticism about his recovery.
“I voluntarily take drug tests. There’s absolutely no way I could be on drugs when I’m taking two drug tests a week. She’s reacting on emotions. She’s angry. She’s hurt,” Jax said in response.
He then opened up about his relationship with his mom, confirming she recently reached out.
“We haven’t talked in six, seven years. That was interesting. I wasn’t really ready to open that up yet. I was glad that she reached out, and my sister too. I want my mother to meet her grandson,” he noted.
With season two of The Valley just weeks away, Jax confessed to worrying about being too boring for reality television.
“I’m nervous people are not going to accept this laid-back person,” he stated. “But I’m hoping people can watch it and be like, it’s about f*cking time.
The Valley season two premieres on Tuesday, April 15, at 9/8c on Bravo.
