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​Model Bridget Malcolm Says She Was Told To Use Cocaine To Lose Weight As Teen

​Model Bridget Malcolm Says She Was Told To Use Cocaine To Lose Weight As Teen

The former Victoria’s Secret star said she wanted to speak out about her experiences as she believes the fashion industry ‘needs to change'

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

Australian model Bridget Malcolm has claimed she was told to 'do cocaine' and 'have lots of sex' to lose weight - all while she was under the age of 18.

The former Victoria's Secret star, 29, said she wanted to speak out about her experiences as she believes the fashion industry 'needs to change'.

She admitted she hadn't been able to talk about it until now due to 'PTSD [Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder]', but said her job should 'not include abuse'.

Malcolm - who recently revealed she was rejected from the 2017 Victoria's Secret runway show after going up a bra size to a 30B - said in an Instagram video: "By the age of 18, I'd lived in three countries alone. I travelled to all continents except for Antarctica.

Instagram/Bridget Malcolm

"I'd been groomed by a much older man. I'd been sexually assaulted multiple times. I'd been told to do cocaine, to lose weight by my agent. I was told weekly, feeling a lot of pressure to lose weight by my agency.

"I developed PTSD. I had been told to just have lots of sex to lose weight.

"I was struggling with my gender identity, I developed anorexia and orthorexia, and anxiety and depression. I couldn't socialise without drinking.

"I was developing quite the reliance on Xanax and Ambien to get me through the night - and that was before I turned 18.

"It didn't get better from then."

PA

She continued: "Eight years later on my 26th birthday, I had a nervous breakdown and I couldn't leave my house for a year without panic attacks and severe anxiety.

"I also had a bout with suicidal ideations, which was terrifying, and that was four years ago."

Malcolm said she is now 'two plus years sober' and 'four years in recovery from an eating disorder', adding that she felt happy, balanced and strong.

"I feel the best I've ever felt," she said.

Instagram/Bridget Malcolm

Malcolm explained she had been unable to address these problems before, but now believed she was in a better place to do so.

She concluded: "The reality is I couldn't talk about my experiences before I reached this place because I would have intense PTSD flashbacks. I would have panic attacks and I wouldn't be okay.

"But I am okay now and that's why I'm speaking out. I am in solid recovery and I'm strong enough for any backlash, and I wasn't before this.

"The only reason why I'm doing this is because I am a strong believer that the fashion industry needs to change. I'm one of the lucky models, I was able to make a long career out of the fashion industry, but my job should not include abuse, and that is why I'm speaking up now."

Featured Image Credit: Instagram/Bridget Malcolm

Topics: Entertainment, Celebrity, no-video-matching