Jon Hamm Talks the Benefits of Therapy
Actor opens up about his weekly sessions and his stint in rehab last year.
— -- Jon Hamm is opening up about his stint in rehab last year and the benefits of therapy.
"It has all these connotations, but it’s just an extended period of talking about yourself," the "Keeping Up With the Joneses" star, 45, told Mr. Porter's The Journal. "People go for all sorts of reasons, not all of which are chemically related. But there’s something to be said for pulling yourself out of the grind for a period of time and concentrating on recalibrating the system. And it works. It’s great."
Hamm feels similarly about seeing a therapist, which he's done since losing his dad when he was 20 (his mom died when he was 10).
"After I’d lost my dad, I had this horrible paralyzing inertia -- and no one in my family was capable of dealing with it. So what do you do? Go and see a professional," he said. "I preach it from the mountaintops. I know it’s a luxury and it’s not something everyone can afford. But if you can, do it. It’s like a mental gym."
Last spring, Hamm, who played a hard-drinking advertising man for eight seasons on "Mad Men," checked into rehab for 30 days. At the time, his publicist released a statement to ABC News, saying, "With the support of his longtime partner Jennifer Westfeldt, Jon Hamm recently completed treatment for his struggle with alcohol addiction."
Months later, Hamm and Westfeldt announced they were splitting after 18 years together. Hamm declined to discuss their current status, telling The Journal, "It’s very personal and specific and I think people tend to draw their own conclusions about that anyway."
Though he appears to be single at the moment, he doesn't rule out one day being a dad.
"I’m not going to psychoanalyze myself here, but ... well, never say never. I’ve got nieces and nephews and I’ve been a teacher," he said. "I’ve probably been around kids a lot more than all my friends. I feel if you shut that off entirely you calcify. You turn into that guy."