"20/20" Anchor Elizabeth Vargas Reveals the Details of Her Secret Life Battling Alcohol and Anxiety with ABC News' Diane Sawyer

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ABC News’ Elizabeth Vargas lived a double life for many years. To viewers, colleagues, friends and family, she had it all - a loving mother with a high profile job. Secretly she was battling alcohol abuse and crippling anxiety on and off camera. ABC News Anchor Diane Sawyer interviews Vargas about her struggles throughout the years, the impact on her personal and professional life, the tools she uses to survive these challenges every day and the hope she has for the present and future. The Diane Sawyer special edition of “20/20” airs Friday, September 9 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET) on ABC.

Vargas will discuss her life story, which is chronicled in her forthcoming memoir “Between Breaths: A Memoir of Panic and Addiction.” The book will be released on Tuesday, September 13 by Grand Central Publishing.

In the special Sawyer and Vargas will report on the link between anxiety and alcohol abuse, and how both affect millions of Americans and their families. Vargas interviews an expert at the National Institutes of Health, visits a treatment center and speaks to alcoholics who are trying to get and stay sober.

The report will appear across ABC News, including “Good Morning America,” “World News Tonight with David Muir,” “Nightline,” ABC News Radio, ABC NewsOne and ABC News’ digital properties on desktop, mobile and OTT.

David Sloan is senior executive producer of “20/20.”

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