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Cara Delevingne pulled back the curtain on one of the darkest periods of her life.
During a candid appearance on Alex Cooper's "Call Her Daddy" podcast, the actress revealed she was taking the drug GHB daily before suffering seizures that ultimately became a wake-up call in her recovery journey. Delevingne, 33, shared some of her most detailed comments yet about the drug spiral that nearly derailed her life despite the model's enormous professional success.
While many fans associate Delevingne's recovery story with the viral paparazzi photos from Burning Man that sparked concern in 2022, she told Cooper the reality behind the scenes was far more severe. At the time, she was using GHB to "effectively knock yourself out" and then cocaine to keep herself awake.
Delevingne revealed that she had planned to get sober after a blowout 30th birthday celebration after years of drug use, believing she could simply stop on her own. Instead, she learned how physically dependent she had become.
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Cara Delevingne revealed that she used GHB daily before suffering seizures that forced her to confront her addiction. ( Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)
"I didn't know how addictive that stuff was," she said, referring to the drug. "I just thought I took it every day. I didn't know that you really had to like medically detox from it. And I started having seizures and that's literally, [the 2022] photos were taken right after I'd had a seizure at Burning Man."
Delevingne admitted her substance use initially offered relief from years of emotional turmoil stemming from childhood trauma, struggles with her mother's illness and longstanding mental health challenges.
"When I first started doing drugs, it was that seeking connection," she told Cooper. "And I felt like I found myself, you know? I was fun. And I loved music. And I loved dancing. And I was like, 'Oh, this is someone I really like. This is really cool.'"
"It was at a pretty young age I started – because I didn't have money at that point – I started buying drugs to sell them and to do them."
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During an appearance on Alex Cooper's "Call Her Daddy" podcast, the model and actress said she hid the extent of her substance abuse while her career continued to flourish. (Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty Images)
What began as a source of connection became a way to isolate and disappear, she said. Eventually, she found herself using substances alone, a turning point she now recognizes as a warning sign.
"I knew it was bad when I started doing them alone and how much I liked that and how much I knew that people weren't judging me," Delevingne said. "And I didn't judge myself for it. And I could disappear. And that – I knew it was a problem."
Delevingne acknowledged that her career was thriving while her personal life deteriorated. The "Suicide Squad" star said success often masked the severity of what was happening because she continued working, earning money and maintaining a public image that appeared functional.
"When you're successful and when you seem you are doing great – you have your hair and makeup done – it's kind of fine," she said. "People make excuses, people are making money. You are paying for people's lives and jobs and kids, you know, you don't wanna stop. You don't wanna say no."
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Cara Delevingne explained that fame and professional success helped conceal her struggles from those around her, even as she privately spiraled. (Edward Berthelot/Getty Images)
But behind the glamorous public image, Delevingne said her private reality was far darker than anyone realized.
"If I say I was good at hiding it, people would be like, 'No you weren't.' But if people thought it was bad, what they saw – they didn't see half of it," she revealed. "The damage was really being done alone because that's where no one could stop me."
The former Victoria's Secret model also revealed that she became suicidal during the height of her fame despite appearing to have everything she had ever wanted.
"I think the kind of suicidal ideation came back around when I was at my height of fame, when I should have been the most happy," Delevingne recalled. "And I felt the most guilty and I felt the most, like I didn't deserve any of it. And I was so close to ending my life."
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"Suicide Squad" star Cara Delevingne shared the details of her recovery journey in hopes that her experience could help others facing similar battles. (Kristina Bumphrey/WWD)
The viral photos of Delevingne at Burning Man in 2022 became a wake-up call for the model. Looking back, Delevingne said she was not shocked by the images themselves because she had been living with that version of herself for years.
"I mean, I realized it was bad, but oh, it was horrible," she confessed. "The shame, oh, the shame was really bad. Again, that was that part of myself that I hated, and I was hiding from everyone. So for everyone to see it, it was like f--- the jigs up."
Now sober and preparing to release new music, Delevingne said she wanted to discuss the specifics of her addiction because she rarely saw people publicly discussing the substances she struggled with.
