Ozzy Osbourne Says He's Been Battling Sex Addiction For The Past Six Years

Black Sabbath frontman and heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne has identified himself as a sex addict, saying that he is undergoing "intense therapy" to deal with his apparent condition following the exposure of a years-long affair with his hair colourist, Michelle Pugh.

In a post made to his official Facebook page early this morning (AEST), Osbourne said that he had been dealing with sex addiction "over the last six years", semi-apologising to Pugh along with other unidentified women with whom he has been intimate.

"I'm sorry if Ms Pugh took our sexual relationship out of context," he wrote. "I'd also like to apologize to the other women I have been having sexual relationships with.

Saying he has been "mortified" by the impact his discretions have had on his family, Osbourne also thanked his wife, Sharon — or, rather, thanked God for Sharon — for being there to support him. Back in May, the pair were reported to have split after more than 30 years of marriage before apparently reconciling.

For her part, Sharon has spoken out on Osbourne's confession via TV show The Talk, on which she described sex addiction as an "embarrassing" affliction — "Somehow drugs and drink is more acceptable, I think," she said — though said she was supportive of Ozzy's decision.

"It's hard, because it affects the whole family," Sharon told the program.

"I'm proud that he's come out and admitted it finally," she continued. "It's very, very hard."

The already uncomfortable situation has been muddied further by Pugh's insistence that Osbourne is not a sex addict — rather, she describes him as having given her "the greatest love of [her] life" during their time together. Additionally, as Rolling Stone reports, she has since filed a defamation lawsuit against the singer's daughter, Kelly, after the latter posted Pugh's phone number to Twitter back in May and accused her of elder abuse for being involved with the nearly-70-year-old Ozzy.

Read Ozzy's apology and admission below.