Although initially reluctant to reveal where she drew inspiration from to write the song, Lee decided to disclose during an interview in August 2006 and confirm the speculations. Her decision to publicly talk about the inspiration came shortly after Morgan had been admitted to a rehabilitation center to undergo treatment for "combination of substances". The singer stated that when conceiving the song, she was aware that "people would read between the lines", hence, she tried to "be completely clear". With it, she felt the need to "say exactly what I was feeling for so long" and continued to describe her process of creating music as a form of a therapy which gave her a medium to express the negative things that had happened in her life and allow her to "turn something bad into something beautiful". "Call Me When You're Sober" helped her in the process of healing from a "painful ending to a relationship". Lee further elaborated: