Chrissy Teigen credits Carl Radke with lighting a fire in her to get sober again after she returned to drinking.
“I am grateful to @carlradke. Not for just all the years on Bravo he has blessed us with, but because of his honesty and openness around his own journey with sobriety,” Teigen, 40, wrote via Instagram on Tuesday, January 27, applauding the Summer House star, 41, for talking about his sobriety with her on a recent episode of her “Self-Conscious” podcast.
Teigen explained that she’s had her “own” ups and downs with sobriety, noting that after being “sober for a little over a year” she “went back to drinking.” (Teigen first cut out booze in 2017 and recommitted to being sober in 2020. She shared in May 2025 that she’d fallen off the wagon.)
“I promised myself it would be in a ‘mindful’ way. I wanted to be able to have a glass of wine on a date night with my husband. To be able to toast on birthdays. How lucky I am to have the life I have — I want to enjoy it!” the Cravings cookbook author recalled of her decision to add alcohol back to her life. “And I think that was my first problem. Tying drinking to reward or like some sort of life prize. Soon it became the kind of drinking I’m all too familiar with.”
Chrissy Teigen’s Sobriety Journey in Her Words: Relapses to Sober Successes
Teigen revealed she began having “quiet moments at home” that “were for wine” and the timing of her drinking got earlier and earlier.
“The time went from 6pm, to 5, to 4, to aw hell, it’s lunch, why not. When it got to 11am, I was like, ‘Oh f***, here we go again,’” she confessed.
Teigen explained that because she’s a “whole a** mom,” she’s not the type of drinker who would “slur your words and miss a step on the stairs.” Instead, she was “quiet and consistent.”
While Teigen said she “missed” being able to jump in the car to get groceries amid her drinking problem, it wasn’t until she spoke with Carl for the January 15 episode of her podcast that a lightbulb went off.
“Within the same week of talking to Carl, I stopped drinking again,” she shared. “I had been in talks for Star Search and knew that if I were given the incredible chance to be on the show, there was absolutely no f***ing way I’d do it with alcohol in my dressing room.”
Teigen noted that the “biggest difference” between her sober journey now and the first time she cut out alcohol is “there’s no pomp around it.”
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“The first time I put my foot down, it was EXCITING. The momentum was fun and kept me going on the right track,” she reflected. “The second time … I dunno. I dunno if everyone around you kind of loses faith or if you do yourself, or a mix of both. Or maybe no one wants to get too excited.”
Despite knowing it would be hard to refocus, Teigen said she is now 52 days sober with “no desire to turn back.”
After speaking with Radke — who announced his sobriety in 2021 following his brother’s death from an overdose — she realized she could “still be funny” and “stupid” and have a life not tied to drinking.
Teigen said she can “still be wildly nervous. Anxious as a mother f***er. And I can get through it all without it.”
She concluded, “I love you guys. Thank you for listening!! Enjoy our talk, because it changed my life. No big deal.”
Radke was so grateful for Teigen’s kind words, writing in the comments section, “Thank you, Chrissy. Your honesty and openness is inspiring and you’re helping A LOT of people. Honored you had me on the podcast! We’re in this together. Keep Going!”
Radke, who opened a non-alcoholic bar in New York in September 2025, has been open about his struggles for years, especially on camera during Summer House.
Summer House’s Carl Radke’s Battle With Addiction in His Own Words
On his January 15 podcast appearance, Radke told Teigen that he hit rock bottom “a few” times but was celebrating five years sober that month.
He told her that sharing a sobriety story publicly is “contagious” and has helped him grow and stay on track.
“I genuinely love you and how you talk about sobriety,” Teigen said, reliving some of her rockier times — like ripping a microwave off the wall when coming off of Adderall.
Radke proceeded to suggest that Teigen start her own “hot walk” club and get outside and get sunshine to better improve her health.
“I applaud everything you’re doing,” Radke said on the podcast. Teigen concluded by thanking him for his own honesty.
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