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James Argent's cocaine shame: Christmas Day kebab alone as he hit rock bottom

The 32-year-old TOWIE star has come clean about his seven year cocaine addiction and the two near fatal overdoes he suffered last year

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James Argent has opened up about the harrowing cocaine abuse as he admitted publicly for the first time the extent of his addiction.

Speaking to The Sun, the former TOWIE star told how he's been using cocaine heavily for the last seven years and suffered two near fatal overdoses in the last 12 months.

Arg, 32, said his lowest moment came at Christmas 2019, which he spent alone eating a takeaway in his own filth.

"My house was a state. I had no food in so the only food I could get was the one kebab shop open on Deliveroo," said Arg.

"I’ll never forget on Christmas Day sitting on my own eating a kebab for dinner. At that point I knew that was the moment where I said I need to get better and sort this out. You couldn’t get any lower."

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James 'Arg' Argent said he called his Towie friend Mark Wright and asked him for help after a lonely Christmas(Image: Instagram, real_arg)

“I remember ringing up Mark [Wright] on Boxing Day saying, ‘I’m ready, can you help me?’" recalled Arg.

Mark jumped into action and got in touch with the owners of a bootcamp in Chiang Mai, Thailand, with Arg checking in on New Year's Eve.

Arg's determination to get clean came as a huge relief to his friends who he says feared he would become the next celebrity death after Love Island's Mike Thalassitis and Caroline Flack.

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Arg's friends were terrified his troubles would lead to a premature death like tragic Love Island host Caroline Flack who took her own life last year(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

While his previous attempts at rehab fell flat, this time Arg stuck with the program - saying this was the first time he finally admitted to himself that he was an addict.

"I just knew that if I don’t get better and I don’t get it right now, I’m gonna die,” said Arg.

He stayed in Thailand for ten weeks taking part in group therapy sessions, eating healthy and exercising every day.

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Arg's weight ballooned as he binge ate after his drug use(Image: Getty Images)
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He's now shed five stone(Image: real_arg/Instagram)

At Easter he returned home to Essex five stone lighter.

The star revealed how his weight ballooned as part of his downward spiral of drug taking and binge eating.

To keep himself clean, Arg is continuing to visit a local out-patient facility as he continues to work on his recovery.

After making his admission over the weekend, the reality star said he wants to 'own' his past and move forward with his life like other ex-addicts in the public eye.