HEALTHDavid Bowie’s Daughter Lexi Reveals Late Musician Forced Her Into Wilderness Therapy Treatment After She 'Turned to Drugs and Alcohol'
David Bowie's daughter, Lexi, revealed he sent her to wilderness therapy after she 'turned to drugs and alcohol.'
Feb. 25 2026, Published 12:51 p.m. ET
David Bowie’s daughter, Lexi Jones, looked back on her dark history of mental health struggles that drove her apart from her father — even during his final days.
In a February 18 Instagram post, the 25-year-old reflected on being sent away to a therapy treatment center at age 14, even though the musician was suffering from cancer.
Jones faced bulimia, self-harm and substance abuse as a teenager, issues that were further exacerbated by her father’s medical battle.
Lexi Jones struggled upon learning about dad David Bowie's cancer diagnosis.
"When my dad was diagnosed with cancer, I was at my breaking point," she expressed. "I was barely 14. I could already see what the future would look like for my family and for all of us. I felt broken before it even happened, and I didn't want to stick around and watch it fall apart. That's when I turned to drugs and alcohol."
Lexi Jones was sent away to therapy.
Jones was “angry and scared,” and it didn’t go unnoticed. One morning before school, the late singer read her a letter that concluded with “I’m sorry we have to do this.” Two men then showed up at her doorstep to take her away to a therapy treatment center, much to her surprise. She grabbed the coffee table and screamed, unaware of where she was being brought to.
"They told me I could do this the easy way or the hard way," she recalled. "I chose the hard way."
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Lexi Jones 'turned to drugs and alcohol' as a teenager.
Jones wound up spending time at a wilderness therapy treatment program for 91 days.
"We made fires by stripping birch bark and striking flint and steel," she remembered. "I was a city girl. I didn't even know this kind of program existed."
David Bowie's daughter, Lexi, was not with him when he died.
Shortly after, she was sent to a treatment center and boarding school in Utah while her father was still suffering from liver cancer at home.
"I had the luxury of speaking to him two days before, on his birthday," she said. "I told him I loved him and he said it back, and we both knew."
Unfortunately, Jones was not present when Bowie passed away on January 10, 2016.
Lexi Jones Claims an Identity Separate From Her Famous Parents
Lexi Jones is the daughter of David Bowie and Iman.
The young singer-songwriter emphasized how despite her father’s fame, she never wanted to be defined by her parents.
“People know me for another reason, not personally, not because they met me, but because of who my parents are,” said Jones, who is also the daughter of Bowie's wife, Iman. “I don’t lead with that in my everyday life. My last name is Jones, and I grew up mostly being treated like a normal kid in normal environments.”
