Jessica Simpson quit alcohol so she could ''understand'' herself.

The 'Open Book' author has been sober for almost three years, and has said her decision to stop drinking was partly inspired by her children - Maxwell, eight, Ace, seven, and Birdie, 16 months, whom she has with her husband Eric Johnson - as well as her desire for ''clarity''.

She explained: ''I did make a huge shift in my life. I was at that point in my life where my kids were growing older and they were watching every move that I made.

''I just really wanted clarity. I wanted to understand myself 'cause I didn't even realise how much I was drinking and how much I was suppressing. I thought it was making me brave, I thought it was making me confident and it was actually the complete opposite, it was silencing me.''

Jessica said alcohol left her feeling ''numb'', and admitted she ''couldn't even understand'' herself when she'd been drinking.

She added: ''It just ended up coming to a surface. I knew a lot of it was coming up, coming up and I couldn't suppress it anymore. The alcohol was not numbing anything. It wasn't numb anymore, I was just numb.

''I couldn't even understand stuff that was coming out of my mouth, it didn't sound like me. So I really had to get back inside the person that I am. When you do that self-reflection it's very empowering. It takes a lot of courage. I can promise anyone on the other side of that fear, that courage is so beautiful and it's one of the most rewarding things and decisions I have ever made in my life. And I never thought I would have to make that decision.''

The 'Blonde Ambition' star also said she's had no desire to relapse during the coronavirus pandemic, as she'd rather spend her time writing in her journal instead of having a drink.

During an appearance on SiriusXM's 'The Jess Cagle Show', she said: ''It's almost been three years, which is crazy, I mean it's pretty, it's awesome. People are like, 'Don't you want to drink during this pandemic, oh, my God, aren't your kids driving you crazy?' I'm like, 'No, I do not want to drink; like, I have not wanted it.' I feel like that's a big blessing. Once I surrendered and gave it over I never looked back, and my husband did it with me so that support was amazing.

''Through the pandemic every morning I journal and I haven't done that in forever. Normally it was to do songwriting or something like that. But now every morning I sit with my journal, I confront myself before I confront my family.''