Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino Says He Once Tried to 'Escape' Wife Lauren During Detox Attempt

Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino is opening up about a low point in his addiction battle.

On Thursday’s episode of Jersey Shore Family Vacation, Sorrentino, 36, got candid about his journey to sobriety during a heart-to-heart with his costar Jenni “JWoww” Farley. The conversation took place while Sorrentino, who is almost three years sober after overcoming a prescription painkiller addiction, was on his way to a speaking engagement at a rehab center in New Jersey.

“There was one time I was attempting to get sober and I had a doctor and a nurse at my house,” he recalled. “They were detoxing me, and after four or five days, I had the ‘f–k-its,’ they call it. Where you’re like, ‘F— it, I don’t want this anymore. I want to go party, I want to feel better.’ ”

Sorrentino said he jumped into his car and drove off. Instead of letting him go, his then-girlfriend Lauren Pesce — whom he married last week — got into her own car and took off after him.

“I was trying to get away from her, so there was a bit of speeding going on, a little bit of a car chase,” he said. “Eventually, a cop pulled up beside me and I actually said to the cop that there was a crazy fan following me. He just didn’t entertain it. He was like, ‘Mike, you’re crazy.’ But I actually said that about my girlfriend, who was behind me trying to help me.”

“That’s a good story for people to hear, because those were my crazy times,” he admitted. “But I could not escape her. She was determined. I turned around and went home and I went through the detox process.”

“I love Lauren more and more,” gushed Farley, 32. “She just stuck by his side. She would not quit on Mike, and honestly, that is so freaking wonderful.”

Once they got to the Discovery Institute, where Sorrentino himself once stayed for a 60-day treatment program, the MTV star met with a local New Jersey man named Anthony, a candidate for the center’s Giving Tree scholarship. The program, launched with Sorrentino’s help, awards detox and residential scholarships totaling over $500,000 worth of treatment to people struggling with drug and/or alcohol addiction.

“The Situation used to do club appearances, but now The Situation is The Inspiration. Every single month, at different rehabs, I share my experience just to help the recovery community,” Sorrentino explained. “When I do this, not only is it one of my biggest accomplishments, but giving back, actually, you’re helping yourself, and I didn’t even know that. So it’s really so dope.”

“I’m very proud of myself. I didn’t think that I’d ever get through it,” he admitted. “I never thought in a million years that I would be the person that I am today.”

RELATED VIDEO: Jersey Shore‘s Mike ‘The Situation’ Sorrentino Pleads Guilty in Tax Evasion Case

Sorrentino has long credited Pesce, his college sweetheart, with helping him turn his life around.

“She’s definitely my better half and the reason why I strive to be the best version of myself and to fight for our future,” he told PEOPLE earlier this year. “And to show a good example to her, her family and everyone watching — because my life has been under a microscope. I have a lot to prove.”

Sorrentino is set to begin an eight-month prison sentence for tax evasion on Jan. 15. A rep for Sorrentino told PEOPLE that the reality star is “grateful to continue work, celebrate the holidays and his three years sober milestone” before turning himself in.

“He looks forward to completing his sentence and coming home to Lauren, family and friends,” the rep added.

Jersey Shore Family Vacation airs Thursdays (8 p.m. ET) on MTV.