Over the past few months, we’ve learned quite a lot about Leah Messer.
Some of the revelations came as a major shock to Teen Mom 2 fans, especially as believed that they already knew everything about Leah from her decade on the show.
Back in May, Leah published a memoir that contained a number of shocking details about her traumatic childhood and the early days of her Teen Mom fame.
It was the first time that Messer admitted to struggling with opioid addiction, and while that news didn’t come as much of a shock to fans, the extent of her habit and the depths to which it took her were carefully-kept secrets until recently.
Teen Mom memoirs are certainly nothing new, but none of the previous literary debuts made nearly as much of a splash as Leah’s, largely because of just how much she’s overcome.
In a bit of belated promotion, Leah will discuss the book in detail on this week’s episode of Teen Mom 2.
Not surprisingly, she’ll be discussing her apprehensions about going public with her drug problem for the first time, but she’ll also offer a new revelation — it seems the reason Leah kept her addiction a secret for so long is that she feared the "hate" she would receive when fans learned of her struggles.
Speaking with a producer, Leah refers to the project as an "autobiography and a self-help book."
She says that she’s excited to share the whole truth with fans, but nervous about what sort of reaction she might receive.
"I’ve also been working really hard writing a book about my life, because even though so much of my path has played out on TV, there’s a lot that I haven’t dealt with publicly," Messer says in a voice-over.
"It became way deeper than I thought it was going to be because I’ve talked about things that I didn’t think I would."
Speaking with a producer about her decision to be so vulnerable, Leah reveals it was a long time coming.
"There are so many reasons behind me wanting to write this book." Messer says.
"I’ve experienced so much in my lifetime that I haven’t been completely honest about and I feel like I’m finally ready – ready to be open about it, ready to take whatever comes. And not care – because I know it’s going to make a difference for someone else."
That’s when she goes into detail about battling addiction in the public eye.
"I’ve never said this before but I was addicted to pain medication," Leah says.
"I definitely think there was a lot – but I was scared to hear all the hate."
She reveals that she was hesitant to speak about her dependency — even after getting sober — as she feared being "stamped" with a "big addict" label on her forehead.
Now. she realizes she has an obligation to young, impressionable viewers who might be struggling themselves.
"I want others to own their story and not be ashamed or feel alone," Messer says on tonight’s episode.
Leah hit rock bottom on camera in the infamous scene where she passed out while holding a baby (thankfully, the child was unharmed).
So while viewers were not surprised by her struggles, they were supportive in their response to her recent candor.
"I’m so glad you are able to speak your truth. The drug problem was not hidden though," one viewer tweeted.
"It was evident but you thought you were hiding it."
"Mad love for you @LeahMesser," another wrote, adding:
"You have come so far & overcame so much. These are the story lines we need to see. Baby daddy drama of the other moms has been played out.
"You are an inspiration to so many. Thank you for being real, raw, & Hundred points symbol. God bless u & your beautiful girls always."
Yes, it seems that Leah has realized she can use her platform for much more than just perpetuating drama.
And we’re sure the viewers whose lives were touched by addiction are deeply appreciative of her honesty.
