It’s been a tumultuous couple of years for former Rascal Flatts guitarist Joe Don Rooney.
Since the band parted ways back in 2020, Rooney was arrested for DUI back in 2021 after crashing into a tree (and blaming it on a deer), before ultimately pleading guilty in 2022.
And last year it was revealed that Rooney was going through a divorce with his wife, Tiffany Fallon, after accusations of cheating by both parties.
But it seems like Rooney has managed to turn things around, and took to social media to give fans an update on what is – and isn’t – going on in his life.
Rooney started out the long post by addressing rumors that have popped up on Reddit that he’s transitioning to a woman:
“There have been so many rumors and opinions thrown around about me – but I’m finally healthy and ready for the world.
And NO, I’m not transitioning to be a woman. That thought has never entered my mind. Nothing against the trans community whatsoever but I needed to set the record straight.”
And he also addressed his DUI crash from 2021, admitting that at that point he was “so far gone” that he’s lucky to still be alive:
“My life and career took a major detour at 4a in the early morning hours of Sep 9, 2021 when I ran square into a tree and about killed myself. I was drunk and I was so far gone with my life – I was completely out of control and finished with trying to fight the fears, depression and anxieties that had spun me out in a way I’ve never experienced before.
My drinking had been an issue for many years – and as they say in AA and treatment, it’s a progressive disease. I am living proof that the progressive nature of drinking can really ratchet up and as I grew older as an adult my drinking grew worse.
The pressures of my career and the many mistakes I made in regards to my home life, coupled with a lot of pain and trauma from my childhood and early on in my adult life, had become too much to bear. I was not a good father – I was not a good husband – and I was not a good band mate to my business partners.
I probably would’ve never taken responsibility for any of this if it hadn’t been for my car wreck on Sep 9, 2021. And btw, going to jail sucks!”
But after the wreck and his subsequent arrest, Rooney entered treatment for his addiction and began to address the longstanding problem:
“Fortunately, (and I truly believe this,) God lead me into that tree safely enough to not kill me – and luckily nobody else was involved and I didn’t injure or kill anyone. I could literally be in a Federal Prison for life right now. That is the reality of what my life had become.
That event lead me to treatment for my alcoholism for 4 months in the beautiful mountains of Utah. When I first got there, I didn’t want to stay. I was ashamed of myself. I was so full of fear and guilt, that it took me all of the those 4 months to really start understanding treatment and the AA way and how to best utilize these new tools that I downloaded from the amazing clinicians, counselors and other patients there.”
And he revealed that he is now 28 months sober and doing better than ever:
“My life has been changed forever – and I’m grateful for the change. I’ve been sober now for almost 28 months come this Jan 13. I never believed I could actually live my life without drinking. It had become such a huge part of my daily and nightly routine. I had tried to stop on my own in the past but the powerful nature of alcohol always found its way back into my life.
I learned that I had to come to the realization that I was powerless over alcohol – and a power much greater than myself (and much greater than alcohol) was the only way to stop drinking and completely restore my sanity.
God intervened and helped me to get my life back. With the help of my family and so many other professional clinical advisors and now numerous new sober forever friends, I’ve been able to get the train back on the tracks and live without the burden of alcohol.
Now, I need to protect my family and protect my sobriety. I have new healthy boundaries for the first time in my life. Only positive, loving, caring & understanding people may enter.”
Joe Don ends by expressing his gratitude for being given the chance to turn things around:
“It’s an absolute blessing in ways I can barely put into proper words. But for now, I’ll just say – thank you God!! I wish there was a way I could give back to God what all God has given to me – but moving forward, I will do my best to reflect God’s light of love and grace onto others like so many have done for me.”
You love to see that he’s doing well after such a dark time in his life.
