Michael Douglas was afraid to lose his addicted son

Michael Douglas’ (75) eldest son Cameron (40), whom he shares with his ex-wife, got so off the road at some point because of his frequent drug use that his parents were at a loss and had sleepless nights. “Life became a pile of misery,” the actor said in an interview with People.

“Addiction is a silent killer, it completely grips you”

Cameron became addicted to cocaine and heroin in his twenties, always had a weapon in his pocket, and himself bought drugs to be able to continue to pay for his ‘hobby’. “I saw what my life was going to be like a mess but I just couldn’t stop it,” says now-40-year-old Cameron, who started drinking and smoking weed as a teenager. “Addiction is a silent killer, it completely holds you in its grip. If at some point you have sunk so deeply, there are only a few options: go to jail or die.”

“Sometimes there were moments of hope, which then faded. I thought at some point I would lose him,” says Michael, who saw his son go to jail for eight years after being convicted of distributing drugs and carrying drugs. Cameron was released in 2016 and said he was ‘a reborn man’.

Michael’s son, who has a nearly two-year-old daughter with his girlfriend Viviane Thiebes, is now doing much better. With the book that Cameron has written about his experiences, entitled Long Way Home, he hopes to help other addicts and thereby possibly save lives.