Jeremy Piven Hasn't Had Fish "in Five Months" Since Mercury Poisoning

Since being told his mercury levels were "six times" normal, Jeremy Piven says he hasn't "had a piece of fish in five months."

On Thursday's Good Morning America, he talked more about his doctor's previous claims that he got sick because of his love of sushi.

"The only protein I got for 20 years was from fish," Piven said. "I kind of thought I was doing the right thing."

He denied rumors that he faked the illness to get out of Broadway's Speed the Plow.

"The last thing I ever thought about doing was not completing this run. I've never not completed anything in my life," the Emmy-winning actor told Diane Sawyer. "They pulled me out of this thing, and that's the truth, Diane.

"You talk about 'the show must go on,' this is in my DNA. To have the rap be on me that I walked out on this thing ... this was the greatest moment of my life," he said of being on Broadway.

Piven -- who recently told Usmagazine.com the illness was "crippling" -- recalled to Sawyer when he realized he first had a problem.

"I was losing my balance and my memory. The lights were too bright. I couldn't get enough oxygen, he said. "I ended up passing out in my place when I got home. I ended up in the hospital for three days."

Dr. Carlon Colker, who treated the Entourage star, said the actor -- who managed to hit a Golden Globe after-party late Sunday -- "will be OK.

See party pics from the 2009 Golden Globe Awards!

I think it'll take a few weeks to a couple of months," Colker said. "Unfortunately it was like pulling teeth to get him out of the show. This is a situation that I think will resolve as long as he's attending to his health."

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