13 Of The Most Shocking Things We’ve Learned From Matthew Perry’s Memoir And Book Tour So Far

In case you didn’t know, Matthew Perry is releasing his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing on Nov. 1.

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For the past few weeks, he’s been doing interviews and certain excerpts from the book have come out.

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Here’s what we’ve learned so far:

Warning: discussion of alcohol and drug abuse.

1.Matthew said that at one point he was taking 55 Vicodin a day.

He’s also had 14 stomach surgeries because of it. He told People, “I didn’t know how to stop. If the police came over to my house and said, ‘If you drink tonight, we’re going to take you to jail,’ I’d start packing. I couldn’t stop because the disease and the addiction is progressive. So it gets worse and worse as you grow older.”

Kevin Winter / Getty Images 2.People reported that after his colon burst from opioid use, and as a result of this, he was in a coma for two weeks and spent another five months in the hospital.

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3.One time his heart stopped for five minutes.

According to Rolling Stone, Perry said he was prescribed hydrocodone and given a shot of propofol before surgery for stomach pain: “Apparently, the propofol had stopped my heart. For five minutes. It wasn’t a heart attack — I didn’t flatline — but nothing had been beating.” You can read about it more here.

David M. Benett / Getty Images 4.Matthew has spent $9 million to get sober.

He told the New York Times, “I’ve probably spent $9 million or something trying to get sober.”

Theo Wargo / Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival 5.Matthew said some very weird things about Keanu Reeves.

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Page Six reported Matthew saying this about his friend River Phoenix’s death: “Why is it that the original thinkers like River Phoenix and Heath Ledger die, but Keanu Reeves still walks among us?”

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He brought Keanu up again when he discussed his other friend Chris Farley’s overdose: “I punched a hole through Jennifer Aniston’s dressing room wall when I found out,” he said. “Keanu Reeves walks among us.” 6.Matthew eventually apologized for the Keanu mentions. He told People, “I’m actually a big fan of Keanu. I just chose a random name, my mistake. I apologize.”

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7.Matthew said Jennifer Aniston confronted him about his drinking, and was the one there for him most.

He told Diane Sawyer Jennifer confronted him once and said, “We know you’re drinking.” Matthew also said about Jennifer, “She was the one that reached out the most. I’m really grateful to her for that.”

Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images 8.Matthew you said you can tell what he was addicted to at the time he was filming Friends because of his fluctuating weight.

According to Page Six he said, “You can track the trajectory for my addiction if you gauge my weight from season to season. When I’m carrying weight, it’s alcohol; when I’m skinny, it’s pills. When I have a goatee, it’s lots of pills.”

Jim Smeal / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images 9.Season nine was the only season of Friends he says he was completely sober.

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10.Matthew had a big crush on Jennifer Aniston.

Page Six reported he said, “Fairly early in the making of Friends I realized that I was still crushing badly on Jennifer Aniston. Our hellos and goodbyes became awkward. And then I’d ask myself, How long can I look at her? Is three seconds too long?”

Ron Davis / Getty Images 11.Dating Julia Roberts was too much for him, so he says he broke up with her.

In an excerpt published by the Times UK Matthew said, “Dating Julia Roberts had been too much for me. I had been constantly certain that she was going to break up with me. Why would she not? I was not enough; I could never be enough; I was broken, bent, unlovable. So instead of facing the inevitable agony of losing her, I broke up with the beautiful and brilliant Julia Roberts.”

Getty Images 12.Matthew told GQ his front teeth fell out after biting into a peanut butter sandwich. He eventually had to get all of his teeth replaced.

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13.And lastly, he’s been clean for 18 months.

He told People he was able to quit drinking after an experience with God and his father, “It was this bright yellow object that became all-encompassing. I couldn’t see the kitchen anymore. It was just this light, and I felt loved and understood, and in the company of God or whatever. My dad was right next to me and we were holding hands and I was praying when it started, which is something I rarely did. It was like God showed me what’s possible. And then said, ‘Okay. Now you go learn this.'”

John Lamparski / Getty Images If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, you can call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) and find more resources here.