Jan. 22 (UPI) — Jessica Simpson is sharing for the first time how she was sexually abused as a child.
The 39-year-old singer and fashion designer went public about the experience in an excerpt from her upcoming memoir, “Open Book,” that appeared Wednesday on People.
In her book, Simpson recounts how the abuse began when she was six years old. The abuse happened while Simpson shared a bed with the daughter of a family friend.
“It would start with tickling my back and then go into things that were extremely uncomfortable,” Simpson wrote.
Simpson said she wanted to tell her parents, Joe and Tina Simpson, about the abuse but felt “in the wrong.” She ultimately told her parents during a car trip when she was 12 years old. Her mom reacted by slapping her dad’s arm and saying, “I told you something was happening.”
“Dad kept his eye on the road and said nothing,” Simpson said. “We never stayed at my parents’ friends house again but we also didn’t talk about what I had said.”
Simpson said the emotional pain from her abuse and other stressors, including pressures in her career, led her to self-medicate with alcohol and stimulants later in life.
“I was killing myself with all the drinking and pills,” she said of her addiction.
Simpson has been sober since November 2017.
“Giving up the alcohol was easy,” she wrote. “I was mad at that bottle. At how it allowed me to stay complacent and numb.”
Simpson remarked on the revelations in an Instagram post Wednesday.
“There is so much beauty on the other side of fear and I hope my truth can help. I can’t wait to share #OpenBook with you,” she wrote.
Comedian Chelsea Handler and actress Odette Annable voiced their support for Simpson in the comments.
“Love u,” Handler wrote.
“Beautiful. I love you. So much,” Annable said.
“Open Book” is scheduled for release Feb. 4. Simpson announced the project in July.
