Jessica Simpson Was Never The Same After Dating John Mayer

Jessica Simpson started her career as a pop princess and evolved into a reality TV star, actor, fashion designer, wife, and mother. Over the years, the singer has struggled with many ups and downs in her life — including a relationship with John Mayer — that left her turning to alcohol to deal with anxiety. During her time in the spotlight, Simpson has made headlines for things such as family issues, her divorce from Nick Lachey, her dating life, her physical appearance, and substance abuse issues.

In 2020, Simpson released her memoir "Open Book," which details some very traumatic and personal situations in her life. The "Dukes of Hazzard" star opened up about her life and her dependency on alcohol, via People. Simpson detailed Halloween 2017 as the day she realized that she needed help. On that day, Simpson says she started drinking at 7 a.m. and missed getting her kids into their costumes, trick-or-treating, and her own Halloween party. The following day, her friends held an intervention for her. Since that time, the singer has been sober. However, it wasn't an easy road. Simpson admitted that it was during her volatile romance with Mayer that her addiction began.

Jessica Simpson and John Mayer dated off-and-on for years following her divorce from Nick Lachey. In her memoir, the "I Think I'm in Love With You" singer says she fell hard for the singer-songwriter, but the relationship raised insecurities that led to her leaning on alcohol for support. "The connection was so strong that he made me feel seductive, and he spoke about sex and my body in a way that made me feel powerful, at least physically," Simpson wrote, via Page Six.

She went on to admit that while the relationship made her feel great physically, it was mentally draining for her. Simpson confessed that she felt inferior to Mayer. "I constantly worried that I wasn't smart enough for him," she said, claiming that she was so insecure that she would have people proofread her text messages to Mayer to check for any grammatical mistakes. "My anxiety would spike, and I would pour another drink," she said in her book. "It was the start of me relying on alcohol to mask my nerves." Simpson revealed that she became addicted to both alcohol and pills, claiming that at least part of her substance abuse problems stemmed from being abused as a child.

In her memoir "Open Book," Jessica Simpson also opened up about how she and John Mayer felt addicted to one another, causing an exhausting toxic cycle in their relationship. "He'd dump me, then come back saying he had discovered he loved me after all ... " she said, via People. "I thought it was a continuation of a love story, while my friends saw a guy coming back for sex with some foolish girl." 

Simpson admitted Mayer's infatuation was something she craved. However, she always worried about their future. "I felt the full intensity of his obsession with me. And it was a drug to me. He studied every inch of my body, every detail of my face. He photographed me constantly, to the point that I worried he was keeping souvenirs before dumping me again," she wrote, via People. For his part, Mayer spoke out about his physical attraction to the singer in a 2010 interview for Playboy, calling her his "sexual napalm." However, Simpson didn't approve of his telling interview, later calling it "disrespectful," per Glamour. "But that's on him," she said.

Simpson and Mayer finally called it quits for good in 2007. Mayer then dated stars like Jennifer Aniston, Taylor Swift, and Katy Perry. Simpson went on to marry Eric Johnson. The couple has welcomed three children, and Simpson has said Johnson is "such a good dad and a good man," according to People. She added, "We both have the same purpose and the same heart in what we're doing together. And that's important."