What happened to Drew Barrymore as a teen? Actress recalls losing everything as a 13-year-old child actor

Popular actress and television show host Drew Barrymore recalled losing almost everything at the tender age of 13 in a recent episode of her talk show, The Drew Barrymore Show, as per an article by Entertainment Weekly. Barrymore mentions that there was a time when no one wanted to work with her and accepts that it was due to her own doing.

"Like, everyone has good moments and bad moments, but when I was 13, I truly lost everything. From my own doing. Barrymore said on her show. "I was never unprofessional, but I had a real car crash of a life and I genuinely… Nobody wanted to work with me. And I understood why, and I took responsibility for myself, but it was a great lesson."

The actress further said that she was grateful and realized that she should take responsibility for her actions and focus more on her work ethic.

While Barrymore did not give insights about her life at the age of 13 and the series of events that took place, she told The Guardian during an interview that she had spent 18 months in a rehabilitation facility when she was 13.

"And it felt… terrible. It was a really rebellious time. I would run off. I was very, very angry." Barrymore told The Guardian.

Barrymore mentioned that these struggles taught her to appreciate all the jobs that were coming her way.

About Drew Barrymore's drug addiction as a child

Barrymore has been quite open about embracing her past and learning from her mistakes as a child actor. In a documentary titled Child Star, Barrymore mentioned being introduced to substances at quite a young age. The Charlie's Angels star comes from a family of actors and has spent some months in a rehabilitation centre.

According to the Gateway Foundation, Barrymore started doing cocaine at the age of 12, five years after the success of her film E.T. It also mentions that Barrymore used drugs as a coping mechanism to tackle childhood fame.

As per The Guardian, John Drew Barrymore, the actress's father, was also an alcoholic, and her mother and manager, Jaid, was also a wild child. When the actress was just 9 years old, John and Jaid got divorced, and Jaid took her to Studio 54, where she was introduced to parties and drugs.

Barrymore became a party person as a child and threw her 10th birthday bash at a bar. She also disclosed on the show that she went clubbing with Billy Idol as a child.

By the age of 12, Barrymore had begun treating her drug addiction. She was also a supporter of the 'Just Say No' campaign by Nancy Reagan. At the age of 13, Barrymore spent around 18 months in a hospital where her drug abuse and addiction were being treated.

The actress told The Guardian that she was scared and had no idea what would happen to her life. She also mentioned that despite everything, she believed in goodness.

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"Half no, in that I was so scared of not knowing where I was going. I really had a fear that I was going to die at 25. And half yes, because no matter how dark shit got, I always had a sense that there should be goodness. I never went all the way into darkness."

Barrymore elaborated that the institution she went to for rehab was quite disciplined and helped her gain control back again, though she did not like being there; it was what she needed at the time.

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