Rob Ford opens up about his decision to go to rehab
The Canadian Press | Posted: September 7, 2014 12:05 AM | Last Updated: September 7, 2014
Toronto mayor entered rehab this spring after admitting to drug, alcohol use
Rob Ford says the decision to enter rehab this year was his and his alone.
Ford brought up his decision to enter an Ontario rehab facility during a speech to at a business conference in Toronto on Saturday.
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In the speech to the National Franchise and Business Opportunities Show, Ford said he wished he did it years ago.
He likened his struggles with addiction to a battle with "the man in the mirror" and that he finally said "enough is enough" before deciding to seek treatment.
Ford says that he was the only person who could make the decision to seek treatment and he did so alone.
Ford entered the GreeneStone residential addiction treatment centre in late April after being confronted with reports of a video showing him allegedly smoking crack cocaine.
He said the decision to enter rehab "just hit home" and that he looked at himself and said "that's it," before entering the facility. Ford was in the rehab facility for two months and says he has since dealt with his substance abuse issues.
"Every time he kept beating me," Ford said of his reflection in the mirror. "I said, 'You know what? Enough's enough. I've got to put everything aside or else one day I'm not going to be able to see that guy anymore.' "
Ford, who is in the midst of a re-election campaign, has admitted to smoking crack cocaine and being in a "drunken stupor."
The mayor's Saturday appearance comes just days after the public learned he'd been subpoenaed to testify in the trial of his former friend and driver Alexander Lisi.
Lisi is charged with extortion for what police have said are his efforts to recover a video recording that appears to show the mayor smoking crack cocaine.
Corrections:- Toronto Mayor Rob Ford entered rehabilitation in late April of 2014, not late May. September 7, 2014 5:15 AM