Naomi Campbell Revealed Her Drug Addiction in the 90s Nearly Killed Her!

Naomi Campbell talks about her past drug addiction. source: Page Six

Naomi Campbell battled substance abuse while coping with childhood trauma and grief at the height of her career.
She said the death of designer and friend Gianni Versace in 1997 made her miserable.
After collapsing at a photo shoot in 1999, she checked herself into rehab.

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Naomi Campell opens up about her past drug abuse

Naomi Campbell shocked fans by revealing that her drug addiction in the 90s nearly took her life.

The supermodel star got candid about her past substance abuse in AppleTV+’s new docuseries The Super Models. There she said that she started doing cocaine to cope with her childhood trauma and the untimely passing of her close friend Gianni Versace.

Campbell said,

“I guess when I started using, that was one of the things I tried to cover up, was grief. Addiction is such a … bulls—t thing, it really is,”
“You think, ‘Oh it’s gonna heal that wound.’ It doesn’t. It can cause such huge fear and anxiety. So I got really angry.”

The legendary runway star said her world fell apart when Versace was killed outside of his Miami Beach home in 1997.

Naomi recalled,

“He was very sensitive to feeling me, like, he pushed me,”
“He would push me to step outside and go further when I didn’t think I had it within myself to do it. So when he died, my grief became very bad.”

Campbell fought her addiction for five years and even collapsed during a photoshoot in 1999.

She confessed in the docuseries,

Naomi Campbell — She said the death of designer and friend Gianni Versace in 1997 affected her badly. source: Page Six

“When you try to cover something up, your feelings — you spoke about abandonment. I tried to cover that with something,”
“You can’t cover it. I was killing myself. It was very hurtful.”

That was the moment the model realized that she needed help and she needed to check into rehab.

The 53-year-old said,

“I chose to go to rehab. It was one of the best and only things I could have done for myself at that time,”
“It’s taken me many years to work on and deal with,”
“And it does still come up sometimes. But I just now have the tools how to deal with it now when it comes up.”

Also, Read Naomi Campbell Faces Backlash for Alleged Heavily-Photoshopped Photos from the 2023 Oscars!

What caused Naomi Campbell’s childhood trauma?

Before Gianni’s death, the mom of two previously said that her childhood trauma affected her terribly after her father abandoned her mother.

In an interview with the later Barbara Walters in 2000, which was featured in The Super Models, Naomi said,

“There’s a lot of issues that I have from childhood,”
“Well, for instance, not knowing your father, not seeing your mother. That brings up a lot of — it manifests a lot of feelings.”

She continued,

“One of those feelings, absolutely is anger,”
“It’s a manifestation of a deeper issue, I think, anger. And that for me, I think is based on insecurity, self-esteem and loneliness…”

The confession comes just days after Campbell joined fellow supermodels Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, and Christy Turlington to return to the runway for the star-studded Vogue World Event in London.

For the lavish event, Campbell looked stunning in a forest green high-necked Alexander McQueen gown with ab-showing cutouts. Crawford looked gorgeous in a nude Versace dress with crystal embellishments.

Christy, 54, rocked a one-shoulder silver Fendi couture gown, and Linda, 58, shone in a voluminous silver cold-shoulder custom Valentino dress from the autumn/winter 2023 collection.

Also, Read Naomi Campbell Wants a Rising Female Star to Play Her in a Biopic if it’s Ever Made!

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