Leah McSweeney has always been very open about her struggles with sobriety on Real Housewives of New York. I didn’t really care for her as a housewife, but I did admire her willingness to be vulnerable. Especially on such a stigmatized topic. After a particularly rough first season when it came to drinking, Leah sobered up. But it wasn’t easy given that the ladies on RHONY are known for partying. Regardless, Leah has had a long road to sobriety, one that included an unlikely friendship.
As reported by Page Six, Leah appeared on an episode of the podcast The Morning Toast to reveal her ties to Julia Fox. Julia might be best known for her recent relationship with Kanye West, but she’s also an actress and model. And according to Leah, she sponsored Julia through Alcoholics Anonymous. Said Leah, “I was her sponsor in AA years ago, and we just stayed friends.” The two have now been friends for over a decade.
Now before we all come for Leah about the anonymity about sponsorship, Julia has openly discussed Leah being her sponsor in the past. In a November 2021 episode of Julia’s podcast Forbidden Fruits, Julia confessed,“Leah was my sponsor in AA. We were both so sick and suffering.” Leah agreed, adding, “I have the coolest sponsees though. I mean, I really was in no shape to help anybody.”
But Julia made sure Leah knew how much she helped her. She recalled, “You told me something that I still think all the time: ‘Tire the body and the mind will follow.’ If I’m feeling depressed or stressed, I’m just like, ‘Let’s get busy.’ I’ll workout and whatever, and I always think about that.” Leah admitted that she received that advice from her own AA sponsor.
Prior to her 2019 debut on RHONY, Leah had been sober for 10 years. After her relapse, she’s approaching the two year mark. As for Julia, she has also been open about her past struggles. Julia previously revealed that she grappled with heroin and pills. She also suffered a near-fatal overdose at the age of 17.
Julia told The Hollywood Reporter back in January of 2020, “It’s kind of a miracle that I’m OK. A lot of the people I grew up with aren’t doing so well. They’re still on drugs or in jail. A lot of them died.”
TELL US – DID YOU KNOW THAT LEAH AND JULIA WERE FRIENDS? ARE YOU PROUD OF LEAH FOR BEING ALMOST 2 YEARS SOBER? DO YOU THINK LEAH WILL BE INVITED BACK TO RHONY?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]