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Drew Carey is having the time of his life hosting The Price is Right and doesn’t intend to leave the show any time soon (if ever!), but he went through “a rough couple of years” before finding his current happiness.
The beloved host recently spoke with TV Insider while on the set of the long-running game show, where he opened up about his mental health, helping others, and how he hopes to host the show until he dies.
Regular Price is Right viewers will have noticed that Carey has kept former host Bob Barker‘s iconic sign-off recommendation “to spay and neuter your pets,” but he’s also added his own. At the end of each episode, Carey tells the viewers, “Take care of yourself, especially your mental health; it’s so important, and I love you!”
Explaining this decision, Carey said, “It’s important to me. I went through a rough couple of years, and I needed to put my mental health first. It was such a help for me to do that and not succumb to sadness or grief.”
He went on to say that his therapist and doctor helped him “find tools to not go completely under,” adding, “That’s all it is: tactics and tools you can learn to help your brain from not going down the drain.”
“You can go into an addiction of feeling depressed and not knowing how to get out. You normalize it, or you normalize feeling bad about yourself,” the Drew Carey Show alum continued. “Life can be so much better with love, forgiveness, boundaries, speaking your mind, saying your truth, and living your truthful life.”
Carey noted how there is still a stigma around mental health, and so some people are afraid to open up and put themselves out there. “They don’t want to seem weak or overbearing or be called, “Oh, that guy’s being an a**hole. He’s stating his worth and won’t put up with something anymore. Why doesn’t he play along like everybody else?’” he stated.
“People end up getting trapped and unhappy. There are all kinds of really well-researched ways to not have that happen to you,” Carey shared. “Professional therapists and psychologists don’t have everything figured out, but they have a lot figured out. Sometimes therapy helps. Sometimes reading a self-help book or talking to a friend. I feel better from being here. So I pass it along.”
Carey, who is currently hosting his 18th season of Price is Right, plans on being here for a long time. “I do have a goal: I want to keep going until I die. This is my 18th season. I’ve got to get the 35 and 41 so I can catch Bob Barker and Pat Sajak,” he said.
He said he once worried about making it another five years or making it to the end of his current contract, but he loves the show so much he hopes he can continue doing it forever.
“Once I hit 10 years here, I was like, ‘Wow, that’s the longest I’ve ever had a job in my life.’ It’s such just a great part of my day, my year, my life. I can’t imagine giving it up,” he stated, before joking, “I don’t like CBS to know that, but it’s going to be a few years ’til my next contract negotiation. So maybe forget I said this. I can quit anytime I want!”
To read more of Carey’s thoughts on Price is Right, you can check out his full interview with TV Insider.
If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, contact the National Alliance on Mental Illness at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264). If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.
The Price Is Right, Weekdays, CBS