Charlie Sheen announced Tuesday during an exclusive interview with “Today Show’s” Matt Lauer that he is HIV positive and has been living with the virus for the past four years.

.@CharlieSheen‘s HIV announcement on TODAY: What it means for his health https://t.co/6mWjcXlKhX pic.twitter.com/ExxFXODIU3

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) November 17, 2015

The disclosure comes after several reports Monday speculated that the former “Two And a Half Men” and “Anger Management” star was set to disclose his HIV positive status after issuing a statement saying he would be “revealing a personal announcement” on Tuesday’s “Today.” During the interview with Lauer, Sheen said,

I have to put a stop to this onslaught, this barrage of attacks and of sub-truths and very harmful and mercurial stories that are about me, threatening the health of so many others that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Sheen was incredibly candid with Lauer, revealing that over the past four years he has paid upwards of $10 million to keep his illness a secret. Some of the individuals extorting him included prostitutes within his inner circle whom he hired for companionship during periods of depression. According to Sheen, one of these prostitutes even took photos of his anti-viral medication in his bathroom and threatened to sell it to the tabloids.

By announcing his status to the world, Sheen hopes to “claim back his freedom” and put his partying days behind him. In part of an open letter written by Sheen he declared,

I accept this condition not as a curse or scourge, but rather as an opportunity and a challenge. An opportunity to help others. A challenge to better myself.

Sheen received his HIV diagnosis after he sought treatment for a three-day cluster of “crushing headaches” he believed were signs of a brain tumor. Despite his diagnosis, his physician Dr. Robert Huizenga affirmed that the actor does not have AIDS, which is the advanced stage of the infection during which a person’s immune system is too weak to fight off many illnesses.

The revelation over the actor’s illness has many concerned that his history of reckless drug and alcohol abuse, combined with his highly-publicized sexual promiscuity, could have led him to carelessly infect others with the disease. Sheen, however, sees this possibility as “impossible.” He did admit to having unprotected sex with two people since the diagnosis, but insisted that both were informed ahead of time and have been under the care of his doctor.

His ex-wives Denise Richards and Brooke Mueller were both notified of his diagnosis when he found out. Now the actor plans to move forward by cleaning up his act and helping others. According to Sheen, his future will be one dedicated to philanthropy, saying,

My philanthropic days are ahead of me. Ernest Hemingway once wrote, ‘Courage is grace under pressure.’ I’ve served my time under pressure; I now embrace the courage, and the grace.

Watch Sheen’s Full Interview Below

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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