Editing Ben Affleck (section)

===Health===
Affleck has both anxiety and depression,<ref name=people2020/> and has taken [[antidepressant]]s since age 26.<ref name=ABC/> He is a recovering alcoholic and follows a [[12-step program]].<ref name=mosaic/> He said he used alcohol to alleviate a constant feeling of "discomfort" and remarked that it "took me a long time to fundamentally, deeply, without a hint of doubt, admit to myself that I am an alcoholic."<ref name=barnesnyt/>

There is a history of addiction and mental illness in Affleck's family.<ref>{{Cite magazine  |title=Casey Affleck Got Candid About Ben Affleck's Alcoholism |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/09/casey-affleck-ben-affleck-rehab-alcoholism |access-date=November 1, 2019 |magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |language=en}}</ref><ref name=barnesnyt>{{Cite news |last1=Barnes |first1=Brooks |title=Ben Affleck Tried to Drink Away the Pain. Now He's Trying Honesty. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/18/movies/ben-affleck.html |access-date=February 19, 2020 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=February 18, 2020}}</ref> Two of his grandparents were alcoholics.<ref name="people2020">{{Cite news |last=McNeil |first=Liz |date=February 26, 2020 |title=Ben Affleck on Why He Drank: 'It Was Something I Was Doing to Avoid Painful Feelings' |url=https://people.com/movies/ben-affleck-on-why-he-drank-it-was-something-i-was-doing-to-avoid-painful-feelings/ |access-date=February 26, 2020 |work=[[People (magazine)|People]] |language=en}}</ref> His paternal grandmother, addicted to both alcohol and [[barbiturate]]s, died by suicide at age 46.<ref name=ABC>{{Cite news |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRwcYKZ2YzU | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211114/hRwcYKZ2YzU| archive-date=November 14, 2021 | url-status=live|title=Ben Affleck shares how he got better and moved on after struggles with alcohol|work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |access-date=February 21, 2020}}{{Cbignore}}</ref> His paternal uncle was an addict who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.<ref name=barnesnyt/><ref>{{Cite news |title=Ben Affleck on the pain and catharsis of 'The Way Back' |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/world/us/2020/02/27/ben-affleck-on-the-pain-and-catharsis-of-the-way-back.html |access-date=February 29, 2020 |work=thestar.com |date=February 27, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> His aunt was a heroin addict.<ref name=barnesnyt/> Affleck attended [[Al-Anon/Alateen|Al-Anon]] support meetings as a child due to his father's addiction issues.<ref name=wtf>{{Cite web |title=Episode 767 – Casey Affleck |url=http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-767-casey-affleck |access-date=August 26, 2018 |work=WTF with Marc Maron Podcast |date=December 12, 2016}}</ref> His brother [[Casey Affleck|Casey]] is also a recovering alcoholic.<ref name="wtfpod.com">{{Cite news |url=http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-767-casey-affleck/ |title=Episode 767 – Casey Affleck |newspaper=WTF with Marc Maron Podcast |access-date=January 1, 2017}}</ref>

Affleck became sober in his mid-twenties, stating in a 1998 interview that alcohol was "dangerous" for him.<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Mansfield|first1=Stephanie|title=Thank God for Unanswered Prayers|url=http://159.54.226.237/98_issues/980628/980628ben_affleck.html|work=[[USA Weekend]]|access-date=April 30, 2017|date=June 26, 1998|archive-date=July 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170714202025/http://159.54.226.237/98_issues/980628/980628ben_affleck.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> He received residential treatment for addiction in 2001 and maintained his sobriety for a "couple of years" afterward.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/entertainment/1475583.stm |publisher=[[BBC News]] |title=Ben Affleck Enters Rehab |date=August 6, 2001 |access-date=March 31, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114172950/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/entertainment/1475583.stm |archive-date=January 14, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|last1=Miller|first1=Julie|title=Ben Affleck Reveals He Recently Completed Treatment for Alcohol Addiction|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2017/03/ben-affleck-rehab-alcohol-addiction|magazine=Vanity Fair|access-date=April 14, 2017|date=March 14, 2017}}</ref> In subsequent years, he refused to discuss his alcoholism in press interviews<ref name="auto"/> and later described it as a period where he "drank relatively normally".<ref name=barnesnyt/> "I thought, 'I want to just drink like a normal person. I want to have wine at dinner.' And I was able to for about eight years."<ref name=ABC/> Affleck gradually began to drink "more and more" and, eventually, was drinking until he "passed out" on a nightly basis.<ref name=ABC/> Garner supported Affleck's struggles with alcoholism during and after their marriage and said in 2020 that attending [[Al-Anon]] meetings empowered her to change "the dance" of their relationship.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jennifer Garner on Mother Growing Up in Poverty, Fame & Marriage |url=https://www.etonline.com/jennifer-garner-on-how-her-mother-grew-up-in-poverty-fame-and-being-married-in-hollywood-155087 |access-date=November 22, 2020 |work=[[Entertainment Tonight]]}}</ref> Affleck received residential treatment in 2017<ref name="GMA">{{Cite news|title=Ben Affleck Confirms 'Treatment for Alcohol Addiction' |url=https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/ben-affleck-confirms-treatment-alcohol-addiction-46140149 |access-date=March 18, 2017 |work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] |quote=A source close to Affleck confirms he physically went to rehab, not an outpatient program. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170317164617/http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/ben-affleck-confirms-treatment-alcohol-addiction-46140149 |archive-date=March 17, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://people.com/celebrity/ben-affleck-treatment-alcohol-addiction/ |first=Jodi |last=Guglielmi |title=Ben Affleck Reveals He Completed Rehab for Alcohol Addiction |date=March 14, 2017 |access-date=April 14, 2017 |work=[[People (magazine)|People]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414001831/http://people.com/celebrity/ben-affleck-treatment-alcohol-addiction/ |archive-date=April 14, 2017 }}</ref> and, following a publicly documented relapse and intervention, again in 2018.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Weaver |first1=Hilary |title=Jennifer Garner Has Reportedly Helped Ben Affleck Return to Rehab |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/08/jennifer-garner-helps-ben-affleck-return-to-rehab |access-date=November 3, 2018 |work=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]|language=en}}</ref> He completed further outpatient treatment over the following year.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Samhan |first1=Jamie |title=Ben Affleck Praises The Man Who Helped Him Through Alcoholism During Legal Issues |url=https://etcanada.com/news/469686/ben-affleck-praises-the-man-who-helped-him-through-alcoholism-during-legal-issues/ |access-date=April 2, 2023 |work=ET Canada |date=June 28, 2019 |archive-date=April 2, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402062241/https://etcanada.com/news/469686/ben-affleck-praises-the-man-who-helped-him-through-alcoholism-during-legal-issues/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> In late 2019, [[TMZ]] filmed him stumbling on a Los Angeles street; he acknowledged the following day that he had a brief "slip" after over a year of sobriety.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://people.com/movies/ben-affleck-didnt-try-to-make-any-excuses-for-Halloween-party-relapse-source/|title=Ben Affleck 'Didn't Try to Make Any Excuses' for Halloween Party Relapse: Source|date=October 29, 2019|website=[[People (magazine)|People]]|language=en|access-date=November 14, 2019}}</ref> He later described the incident as "embarrassing": "I wish it didn't happen. I really wish it wasn't on the internet for my kids to see."<ref name=barnesnyt/>

During press for ''The Way Back'' (2020), in which he plays an alcoholic, Affleck stressed that he felt "vulnerable" when talking about his addiction<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Harvilla |first1=Rob |title=The Real-Life Parallels Are Dominating Ben Affleck's 'Way Back' Press Tour |url=https://www.theringer.com/movies/2020/3/5/21164714/ben-affleck-way-back-press-tour-divorce-alcoholism |access-date=December 6, 2020 |work=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]] |date=March 5, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> and did not intend to "go on talking about this issue forever": "I think the value, if there is value in me talking about being a recovering alcoholic, is that that doesn't have to be who you are. That doesn't have to be the label on your head."<ref>{{Cite news |title=Ben Affleck covers everything from sobriety to 'Good Will Hunting' in this SXM interview |url=https://blog.siriusxm.com/ben-affleck-covers-everything-from-sobriety-to-good-will-hunting-in-this-sxm-interview/ |access-date=December 6, 2020 |work=Hear & Now |date=March 4, 2020}}</ref> In 2023, he said he often advises fellow actors to avoid speaking publicly about their addiction issues where possible: "You don't need to be anybody's poster child."<ref name=keegan/>