Nikki Sixx marked 20 years of sobriety with an encouraging message to those still struggling with addiction issues.

Using the hashtag #sobrietyrocks, the Motley Crue bassist shared an image of his 12 Steps personal clock, which showed he’d stayed sober for 240 months (or 7,306 days or 175,319 hours) as of July 2.

“Some people will try and kick you in the nuts, steal your money, stab you in the back … let you down, sabotage yer life, not believe in you and gossip that you’ll never make a day without drugs or alcohol,” Sixx wrote on Instagram. “And do you know what you’re gonna do? YOU’RE GONNA STAY SOBER ONE DAY AT A TIME. You are the miracle, the one that breaks the addiction chain, the one who is a living amens. The one who has altered your family history.”

He continued: “You will live in gratitude for those that never thought you’d stay sober or make it out alive BECAUSE THEY MADE YOU STRONGER and you know how to forgive assholes. And when you see people who are still suffering, treading water or gasping for air, be sure to throw them a life vest. Because we give back now to those that are still afflicted and hope they too pass it on.”

In 2019, Sixx recalled his entry into the world to hard drugs, telling Rolllng Stone: “When I was first introduced to heroin, it was like, ‘Oh, these writers, songwriters and painters do that.’ I was young and naïve. I didn’t realize the demon it was.” He continued: “I learned that drugs are like Band-Aids and that Band-Aids don’t work. You’ve got to clean out the wound. I had to struggle with that through the fame and success. In certain parts of my life, I could have made better decisions. I feel bad for the people in my family that I scared. And I regret that when the band finally got what we wanted, we were self-destructing.”

He also recalled the incident in 1987 when he spent a brief time clinically dead as the result of an overdose — the experience that inspired the Motley Crue song “Kickstart My Heart.” Asked what he’d learned, he replied: “That it hurts to come back. My heart stopped. My body stopped. It’s like you turned the computer off and they restart the computer. It felt like I’d been fucking hit by a truck. Every single thing hurt. My hair hurt. That reboot is a bitch.”

Motley Crue Lineup Changes: A Complete Guide

The complete story of Motley Crue's five lineup changes.

Think You Know Motley Crue?

More From Q 105.7