Jessica Simpson shares candid 'unrecognizable' photo to celebrate 4 years sober: 'I didn't love myself'

• Monday, Jessica Simpson shared a candid photo of herself on Instagram to mark four years sober.
• Simpson calls the woman in the photo "unrecognizable."

Jessica Simpson is celebrating four years sober by opening up about her sobriety journey.

Monday, the singer shared a photo of herself on Instagram from November 1, 2017, her first day without alcohol.

Simpson said the woman in the photo looks like "an unrecognizable version" of herself.

"I knew in this very moment I would allow myself to take back my light, show victory over my internal battle of self respect, and brave this world with piercing clarity," Simpson captioned the photo.

"Personally, to do this I needed to stop drinking alcohol because it kept my mind and heart circling in the same direction and quite honestly I was exhausted," the singer continued, adding, "I wanted to feel the pain so I could carry it like a badge of honor. I wanted to live as a leader does and break cycles to advance forward - never looking back with regret and remorse over any choice I have made and would make for the rest of my time here within this beautiful world."

Simpson previously told People Magazine in January 2020 she quit drinking after realizing she couldn't dress her kids for Halloween in 2017.

Her decision led her to write her memoir, "Open Book," where she detailed the day she hit "rock bottom."

"I am ashamed to say that I don't know who got them into their costumes that night," Simpson wrote in the memoir, according to People.

The next day, she made the decision to quit after meeting with a group of friends.

Simpson shared the candid photo while bringing attention to how it can be difficult to open up about one's journey, saying, "There is so much stigma around the word alcoholism or the label of an alcoholic."

"The real work that needed to be done in my life was to actually accept failure, pain, brokenness, and self sabotage," Simpson wrote. "The drinking wasn't the issue. I was. I didn't love myself. I didn't respect my own power."

"Today I do," she continued, adding, "I have made nice with the fears and I have accepted the parts of my life that are just sad. I own my personal power with soulful courage. I am wildly honest and comfortably open. I am free."