DENVER - Actor Charlie Sheen continues to speak out again after production of his show "Two and a Half Men" was halted late last week. Sheen's off-screen behavior and criticism of show creator Chuck Lorre is costing him $2 million per show. He talked first on Monday morning's "Today Show" and then later Monday evening on CNN.
Sheen is not only at war with CBS, he's also taking aim at Alcoholics Anonymous and other rehab programs.
The TV sitcom millionaire says he cured himself of his addiction.
"I close my eyes and - and - and made it so, with the power of my mind. Had to unload 22 years of fiction, and just decided that I don't believe that anymore, and I know my own truth, and I just - that's what I stand on right now," Sheen said.
When asked what kind of fiction, Sheen replied "the fiction of AA."
On national television, Sheen said he believes Alcoholics Anonymous has a 5 percent success rate.
"For any narcissist, it's going to be really difficult to accept the AA program because what they have to do is they have to look for a power outside ourselves," Denver substance abuse counselor Nancy Lantz said.
Lantz says with the right support, some do recover without a 12-step program, but she says she fears Sheen's anti-AA comments could be dangerous for her clients.
"Anybody in denial will find anything they can use so they don't have to move into recovery," Lantz said.
9NEWS spoke with the people at the Rocky Mountain Region of Alcoholics Anonymous. They didn't want to say much because it's their policy to always maintain anonymity.
There's a tri-annual survey of AA members online that shows 95 percent of new members drop out during the first year off attendance.
It should be considered that many of those drop outs are "repeaters," and there is no way to know how many people re-enter the program.
Sheen's been taking aim at the belief that it takes a certain number of days to get sober. The counselor we talked to says it takes anywhere from 45 to 60 days after somebody stops drinking for their brain to start to heal and their body chemistry to return to that normal functioning state of being.
9NEWS spoke to one man, who prefers to remain anonymous, who says he's proof that you can recover from what can be a deadly addiction, if you're willing to put in the time and energy.
"I've got 31 years of sobriety almost, and a big part of my early sobriety was based in AA. Alcoholics Anonymous doesn't work for a lot of people because they don't work Alcoholics Anonymous," he said.
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