“The Designing Women” star, Delta Burke, reportedly revealed that scrutiny over her weight led her to using crystal meth in an attempt to drop pounds.
The famous actress acknowledged body image issues hit her hard when critics relentlessly targeted her weight during the height of her career, during a recent episode of the “Glamorous Trash” podcast, according to People.
The 67-year-old star reportedly admitted she was “emotionally too fragile,” to deal with the “incredibly ugly” narratives that circulated about her weight gain, and couldn’t handle the pressure. When the appetite suppressing pills she was taking no longer had any effect, the star said she began using illegal drugs, the outlet reported. “Nobody knew about crystal meth at the time,” she reportedly said.
Actress Delta Burke arrives November 23, 2003, for the opening night of the Broadway musical Wonderful Town at the Martin Beck Theater in New York City. Photo by Lawrence Lucier/Getty Images
Burke said the comments about her weight were extremely harsh, and described an instance in which a fan “jerked” her coat open and said, “let’s see, how fat are y’a,” according to People. The famous actress reportedly added that many people would ask her if she was pregnant at the time, and the entire situation became unbearable for her.
She said she began taking prescription pills commonly called “Black Beauties,” while in drama school in London, but discovered the pills were illegal in the U.S., after returning, the outlet reported. She reportedly found a person on set that managed to smuggle them in for her, and admitted she would “take them in the morning so you won’t eat.”
Actress Delta Burke arrives at the BraveHeart Awards for Brave Hearts at The Westin Hotel LAX on October 3, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Actress Delta Burke attends the Television Academy’s Performers Peer Group Celebration at The Montage Beverly Hills on August 21, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California. Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
“They were like medicine to me,” she said on the podcast, according to People. After taking the pills for so long, they were reportedly no longer effective, and Burke sought alternative options for weight control. That’s when someone offered her some crystal meth as a replacement, the outlet reported. Burke reportedly said she was told to “snort” the meth, but she “put it in cranberry juice” instead.
She noted that she would sip her crystal meth-infused drink before work and “wouldn’t eat for five days,” according to the outlet
“And they were still saying, ‘Your butt’s too big. Your legs are too big.’ And I now look back at those pictures and go, ‘I was a freaking goddess,” she reportedly said.
“I thought I was stronger. I tried very hard to defend myself against lies and all the ugliness that was there and I wasn’t gonna win,” she said on the podcast, the outlet reported.
Actor Delta Burke attends the after party for the opening night of “Steel Magnolias” on Broadway on April 4, 2005 in New York City. Photo by Peter Kramer/Getty Images
Actress Delta Burke arrives at AFI Associates & Sony Pictures Classics’ premiere Of “Get Low” held at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
“I remember on the set, when it got to be really bad, and I wasn’t handling it well with a smiling face, my whole body language changed. I would kind of hunch over… I just tried to disappear,” she continued, according to the outlet. (RELATED: ‘I Need D*ck’: Cardi B Shares Her X-Rated Weight-Gain Plan)
“Hollywood will mess your head up. And I had always thought, ‘I want to be a famous actress.’ I thought that meant that you would be a famous and well-respected actress, but that’s not what it meant. And the moment I became famous, it was like, ‘Oh no, no, no. This is not what I had in mind at all. I don’t think I want to be this anymore.’ But then it’s too late,” she reportedly said.