Justin Bieber Reveals the ‘Unconventional’ and Pricey Methods He Uses to Treat the Effects of Addiction in ‘Seasons’ Documentary
Justin Bieber has had his fair share of controversies over the years, as a young pop star. Now that he’s admitted to dealing with drug addiction in his late teen and early adult years, he’s opening up about his treatment process. In Bieber’s new documentary show Seasons, streaming on YouTube, the “Baby” singer explained how a “dark period” earlier in life led to pills, lean, and marijuana abuse. Now, the 25-year old singer gets infusions and treatments in a hyperbaric chamber to deal with the lasting effects of addiction.
Justin Bieber dealt with addiction at a young age
Justing Bieber is now happily sober. But since dealing with addiction, the singer “has been diagnosed with anxiety, chronic mono, and Lyme disease,” according to Insider. The symptoms of these issues “cause lethargy, anxiety, and heart palpitations.”
In a new fifteen-minute episode of the YouTube docuseries, both Justin Biber and his wife Hailey Bieber get into his treatment process.
Hailey Bieber’s take on the situation:
I think when you take somebody very young and they start to get horrible, crazy, crippling anxiety and it goes undiagnosed and you don’t know what it is that you’re feeling, you start to self-medicate because it makes you feel better.
Justin Bieber also opened up in Seasons about his use of anti-depressants. They “help me get outta bed in the morning,” he says. While anti-depressants are a common and accepted form of medicine, some of his treatments are a little more out there.
“He also swears by sleeping in a hyperbaric chamber and getting NAD+ infusions administered through an IV — a common, though unproven, treatment for people battling substance abuse,” Insider reports.
Bieber explains his treatment for the effects of addiction in YouTube documentary series ‘Seasons’
Justin Bieber has two hyperbaric chambers; one at his music studio and one at home. (Each costs thousands of dollars).
Insider defines the chambers as such:
Hyperbaric chambers are enclosed rooms or pods in which patients sit while the air pressure is increased to three times more than normal ground-level air pressure. To do it in a clinic, individual sessions can range from $75 to $100.
Apparently, hyperbaric chambers most frequently used to treat “deep-sea scuba divers who experience huge changes in air pressure.” Mayo Clinic also reports their use for alleviating “burns, brain abscesses, gangrene, and other forms of infections in the body.”
“People are going to think this is some rich people sh*t,” Hailey Bieber said. But she disagrees.
Bieber demonstrates how the chamber functions in the YouTube series.
“Bieber climbs into what appears to be large, blue bag,” Insider writes. “He described how the machine pumps oxygen into the zipped chamber, helping with his breathing and to decrease his stress levels.”
Justin Bieber and his wife talk hyperbaric treatments and NAD+ infusions
Bieber goes on to comment on the significance of taking care of your emotional well-being.
“Mental health is so important to get on top of,” Justin Bieber says in Seasons. “If you have ADHD if you have… something and you don’t want to take medicine, I strongly believe in it.”
Some limited research backs up Bieber’s claim. Recent studies report that chamber treatment is effective for particular conditions like “depression, anxiety, and PTSD.”
However, according to American Addiction Centers’ Dr. Mark Calarco, “there are no clinical studies that prove hyperbaric oxygen therapy can help with anxiety.”
“If it’s done properly and in a safe environment, the risks are low, so maybe there’s some benefit there on an individual level,” Calarco said. “But we don’t know.”
Seasons also shows Bieber getting “weekly NAD+ infusions via an IV drip.” What in the world is that?
NAD+, or nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, is a molecule that helps enzymes in the body function properly to give people energy. As people age, NAD levels typically decrease, causing fatigue and other symptoms like depression.
NAD+ is traditionally used to treat things like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. In other words, it’s not typical for addiction treatment.
Hailey Bieber claims that the infusions “help to rejuvenate and rebalance the pleasure center in the brains of former addicts.”
Bieber’s addiction treatment may not be medically accurate
However, not all medical experts agree.
Insider reported that there’s not a single study showing “NAD+ helps with … the impacts of addiction on pleasure centers of the brain.”
“If people feel better after they have an infusion … and their behavior is more aligned with recovery and they feel healthy and they’re able to perform at a higher level, I think that’s a good thing,” one medical professional told Insider. “But I don’t think we can go so far as to say it’s a direct treatment for recovery.”
However, the placebo effect–and the power of money–is undeniable. As long as Bieber is staying healthy and feeling good, that’s all that really matters.
How to get help: In the U.S., contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration helpline at 1-800-662-4357.
