Tana Mongeau is opening up about her past struggles with substance abuse.
In a new episode of her podcast, Cancelled, the creator spoke candidly about her drug use over the course of her career, particularly her dependency on prescription pills.
“I do truly feel like I’m in a place in my life where I’ll never be that bad again or that dark again or that addicted, really, to anything, ever again,” she told co-host Brooke Schofield.
“I guess, like after I, you know, got through a lot of these addictions, especially pills, and had like, some scary close calls and shit, I just kind of moved on. I was like, okay, I don’t do that anymore,” she explained.
“I don’t remember like three years of my life, which I think is really sad,” Tana continued. “I shot an entire reality show on Xanax and I don’t remember it at all.”
Tana went on to say that she wasn’t shooting the show while “barred out” on the Xanax, which is a benzodiazepine commonly used to treat anxiety disorders, but rather, she would take “so much” Xanax when she was done filming, that the effects would last into the next day.
“There was just a time in my life where I was abusing everything I could,” she finished.
Tana’s reality show, called ‘MTV No Filter,’ premiered on YouTube in July 2019. The series initially launched as a docuseries about the creator turning 21 but eventually turned into a chronicle of Tana’s turbulent relationship with mega-YouTuber Jake Paul.
‘MTV No Filter’ ran two seasons, throughout which Tana spent a large portion of the show sleeping, recovering from partying, and struggling to meet her professional commitments.
At the time, Tana faced criticism for treating her friends poorly and downplaying an asthma diagnosis.
“MTV wanted the drama, and I didn’t think the episode would end up the way it did,” she later said of the show. “There’s probably people who are still skeptical when it comes to that, but I know my truth to this.”
Fans have since praised Tana for opening up about her substance abuse, calling her struggles “relatable” and saying they’re proud of her for getting through that.
You can listen to the full Cancelled podcast episode here.