“Bachelor” Chris Soules Says He’s Nearly 6 Months Sober: 'The Longest I’ve Went Without Drinking Since I Was a Kid'

Bachelor alum Chris Soules says he’s been sober for nearly six months, saying, "Enough is enough," after revealing that he began drinking before he even had a driver's license.

“Health-wise, I actually quit drinking in August and plan to continue to do so for the foreseeable future, which is a big deal for me,” the reality star, who was on season 19 of the ABC hit, said on the Jan. 24 episode of the Ben & Ashley Almost Famous podcast.

“I’ve kind of been embracing that, and hopefully that will make a lot of things better in my life,” he continued.

Soules — who has been arrested in the past for driving under the influence — explained that there wasn’t a specific catalyst that made him give up alcohol. Drinking was “just getting to a point where the hangovers aren’t getting any easier," Soules, 43, explained. "It became more of not necessarily doing it as much for fun, as much as you’re doing it as something to cover up just stress in general.”

Related: Chris Soules Says He 'Had Nothing Left to Live for' After Involvement in 2017 Fatal Car Crash

The farmer said he’s “still single, haven’t really been dating too seriously,” explaining: “I’m kind of in that season of my life where I’ve been through a lot of stuff, you know, so just trying to get myself in a good position to still find somebody.”

Since giving up drinking, “mentally, I’m much more clear-headed," he said, adding that "the level of self-made anxiety and stress, internally … alcohol does not make it easier. It makes it tougher.”

Soules explained that now, in the morning, he feels “like going to the gym” instead of “recovering.”

Related: Chris Soules Says His Relationship with 'Bachelor' Was 'Complicated' by Involvement in Fatal Accident

“It’s pretty astounding. I think it’s the longest I’ve went without drinking since I was a kid — a little kid — which is scary to me,” he said, explaining drinking is a “deep cultural thing” in the midwest. The Iowa native said growing up, “beer was very much a staple,” and shared that he began drinking before “I had a license.”

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Now, he says, “Mentally, the clarity that you get from that, and [I'm] starting to work on other things, just meditation and things like that. I’m getting to be an old man now, I got the next 40 years of my life ahead of me, so trying to really, hopefully, embrace that. It allows me to be a better person to the people I love — more there, more present, which is huge.”

“It was a way of life for me for so long, alcohol’s just not really healthy for you,” he said. “I just made my mind up, enough is enough.”

The Bachelor season 29 premieres Monday, Jan. 27, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

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