Lifestyle Health Celebrity Health 'Big Sky' 's Dedee Pfeiffer Details 'Rebirth' After Battling Alcohol Addiction: 'Help Is There' Dedee Pfeiffer took a 10-year hiatus from acting to focus on her health and described how family members, including sister Michelle Pfeiffer, contributed to her recovery from addiction By Vanessa Etienne Vanessa Etienne Vanessa Etienne is an Emerging Content Writer-Reporter for PEOPLE. People Editorial Guidelines Published on October 4, 2022 11:07AM EDT Photo: Frank Ockenfels/ABC via Getty Dedee Pfeiffer is detailing her life-saving recovery after struggling with addiction. The Big Sky actress, 58, recently spoke to Page Six about turning her life around through rehab after dealing with alcoholism. "When you're active in your disease, you're the identified problem," she told the outlet. "The minute you go into recovery … the day you say I want to change, you become the identified possibility." Prior to returning to acting in 2020, the star had taken a 10-year hiatus from the entertainment industry to focus on her health. During that time, the Cybill alum went back to school, raised her two children and worked for the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. She called this period of her life a "rebirth." "To really submerge myself in the real world, in the bowels of the real world, for 10 years and then come back, was really shocking," Pfeiffer said. Cheryl Burke 'Very Proud' of Her Sobriety Journey, Hopes to Be Sober the 'Rest of My Life' Michael Moriatis/ABC via Getty Noah Cyrus Reveals Advice Dad Billy Ray Cyrus Gave Her Before 'Committing' to Recovery for Xanax Addiction She added that her family played a significant role in straightening out her life and that they "wanted to offer help" during her low points. "At that time, my answer was [that] I was already looking for 800- [and] anonymous [helpline] numbers that I was going to call. I just didn't know how to ask for help," she recalled. "I was kneecapped with shame, I was kneecapped with embarrassment, I was kneecapped with the feeling of feeling like a failure because I couldn't stop and I didn't know how to stop. I kept trying but I couldn't do it, which just makes you feel like s— about yourself." The actress made it clear that having an ultra-famous sister, Michelle Pfeiffer, was in no way a contributing factor to her struggles. "For me, it all revolved around my insecurity and then this undiagnosed trauma and addiction," she explained in the interview. "I think people would love to say that being Michelle Pfeiffer's sister has anything to do with any of my issues, and — excuse me — I can tell you right now: no, no, and no." Chrissy Teigen Says She's 'Happier and More Present Than Ever' as She Marks 6 Months of Sobriety Jim Smeal/BEI/Shutterstock Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Pfeiffer continued, "She's one of the most amazing, beautiful, smart, compassionate women I know, and I'm lucky to say she's my sister. Are you kidding me? That's a plus, not a minus." Looking back on how far she's come, Pfeiffer told Page Six that she hopes people in similar situations know that "help is there for you." "The support you're going to get is so beautiful," she added. "It saved my life." "I decided, in this generation, I'm not going to die with my disease," she said. "I'm going to show my boys and my family and my friends that you can change. You can change a whole generation by stopping right now and making those decisions, you know?" If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.