LaLa Kent will never forget the pain of losing her father.
In April 2019, the Vanderpump Rules star said goodbye to her dad and sharedon Instagram that her world had “crumbled.” As a way to get through the grief,LaLa said she began drinking non-stop from morning until night.
“It was how I was coping,” the Bravo star exclusively shared with E! news.”When I went on the full on binge drinking for I believe it was three or fourdays straight, I just woke up with that feeling of being out of control, notknowing what I did, just the guilt and the shame and that was the moment Isaid I’m taking my life back. I’m not living one more day this way.”
Now, the 32-year-old is celebrating three years and 11 months of sobriety.She’s also marking National Recovery Month by sharing her story in hopes ofinspiring those in need.
Before, LaLa said she would go out for a night on the town and be unable toremember what happened the next day. But now, as a mom to 17-month-oldOcean the reality star says she is “present for every single moment” oflife, including all of her daughter’s milestones.
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“The fact that my child will never see me in an altered state, that’s justamazing,” she said. “I get to sit here and just remember her hands or thefirst time we went to a barbecue and she got in the pool. I remember everydetail.”
She also said she’s more alert when she films Vanderpump Rules. According tothe Bravo star, she takes a beat to listen and isn’t “so quick to go in.” Atthe same time, if someone says something that she doesn’t agree with, “I’mpopping up.”
“I do have this internal battle all the time because my line of work doesn’trepresent what my program represents,” she explained. “I’m going into thisenvironment and I am speaking my truth, but at the same time, I go into theserooms where it’s all about becoming a better person. It’s a conflict.”
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In the past three years, Lala said her past and present co-stars—includingStassi Schroder , Katie Maloney and Scheana Marie —have beensupportive of her sobriety. ****
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“It’s nice when people take a step back and realize, ‘Wow! Lala goes intoevery moment without any liquid to calm her nerves,'” Lala shared. “I wouldsay those three have been incredible since I started this journey.”
Andrew Toth/Getty Images for Brent Shapiro Foundation
Earlier this month, Stassi and Katie joined Lala as she was honored with theSpirit of Sobriety Award from the Brent Shapiro Foundation, a non-profit whosemission is to save lives through awareness and effective programs thatincentivize kids to abstain from drugs and alcohol.
While she was the honoree for a special evening, Lala said the high schoolstudents working on their own sobriety deserved credit at the event.
“We all say that the youth are our future,” she said. “I really look at themdifferently, especially since becoming a mom. I don’t know any otherfoundation that exists who does what the Brent Shapiro Foundation does.”
Perhaps the youngest member Lala hopes to leave an impression on is her owndaughter. As Ocean grows into a young girl, her mom hopes she knows that womenhave all the power in the world.
“If you want something, you could most certainly get it,” she said whenrecalling the advice she passes on. “The hardest thing I ever did in my lifeis the proudest thing I’ve ever done in my life. I hope that when she growsup, she sees that she can truly do anything in the entire world.”
And when Lala begins to think about what her dad would say about her progress,she can’t help but light up.
“I know that he’s just beaming up there,” she said. “Even though I miss him somuch, he’s doing work for me up there. The blessings that have come into mylife since my dad has been gone, I will say I thank him pretty frequently.”
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