Christy Carlson Romano is offering a candid account of her post-Disney years, describing how she used partying and drugs in an effort to attract attention. In an exclusive clip from the Tuesday, September 29 episode of the "Not Skinny But Not Fat" podcast, the 42-year-old actress spoke with host Amanda Hirsch about that period of her life.
Romano characterized herself as someone who turned to binge drinking and partying to cope. "I was a binge drinking, solve your problems by partying and going out and having fun [kind of person]," she told Celebrity News: Latest Celeb News & Pictures - Us Weekly.
When Hirsch asked about her first time trying cocaine at a star-studded party, Romano said she was older than many might assume. "I was old to start to try cocaine. I was, like, 23," she told Celebrity News: Latest Celeb News & Pictures - Us Weekly.
Romano, who discusses the incident in her forthcoming memoir, Once Upon a Trainwreck: The Rise and Fall of a Child Star, made clear that she did not enjoy the drug itself. Instead, she said, what drew her was the reaction it generated from those around her.
"I think what I liked was the attention I got for doing it in front of people. You feel cool doing it in the moment, in the room with people," she told Celebrity News: Latest Celeb News & Pictures - Us Weekly. "Everybody is like, 'I got the Disney girl to do cocaine for the first time.'"
Romano is best known for her roles from the early 2000s, including Even Stevens, Kim Possible and Cadet Kelly. She explained that her pursuit of visibility predated social media, when celebrities had far less control over their public image.
"I didn't care [if people found out]. First of all, I had been clubbing for a while just trying to get noticed and it never happened," she told Celebrity News: Latest Celeb News & Pictures - Us Weekly. "Before Instagram, you really didn't have control over your image."
The conversation also touched on an embarrassing moment from Romano's past involving Lindsay Lohan. Romano recounted approaching Lohan in hopes of bonding with her amid Lohan's feud with Hilary Duff, an interaction that did not produce the friendship she sought but that she said taught her a valuable lesson.
"I'll kick myself because it's an embarrassing story but we all have things," she told Celebrity News: Latest Celeb News & Pictures - Us Weekly. "And that's what I hope makes the book relatable, where it's, 'Foot in mouth. You were dumb and now you've learned from that.'"
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Ava Hart
Ava Hart is a pop culture junkie and loves to share what's happening in Hollywood and what trends are taking the world by storm.
