Robert Downey Jr opens up about break-up with Sarah Jessica Parker

London, April 17 : Robert Downey Jr. has revealed that his addiction to drugs and drinking broke up his seven-year relationship with Sarah Jessica Parker - even though she tried to help him cope.

In an interview with Parade magazine, the 43-year-old confessed how Parker used to urge him to quit the addictions.

"I liked to drink, and I had a drug problem, and that didn't jibe with Sarah Jessica, because it is the furthest thing from what she is," The Telegraph quoted him, as telling the magazine.

"She provided me a home and understanding. She tried to help me. She was so miffed when I didn't get my act together," he added.

He added that the 'Sex and the City' star 'would pull me out of a hangover, and we'd go pick out furniture together.'

"I was in love with Sarah Jessica . . . and love clearly was not enough," he said.

"I was meant to move on. And, after some heartache, she was meant to find her home with a great star," he added.

Downey, who split with Parker in 1991, is now married to producer Susan Levin, whom he credits for transforming his attitude about life.

"Before I met Mrs. Downey, I just didn't give a goddamn. What changed is that I cared," he said.

"I'm learning the business of building a life. Instead of getting instant gratification by getting high, I push my nose as far into the grindstone as I can.

"The honey, the reward, is the feeling of well-being, the continuity, the sense that I am walking toward a place I want to go," he added.

ANI