Featured Image Credit: Spotify / Instagram / miakhalifa
Topics: Adult Industry, Health, Louis Theroux, Mental Health, Mia Khalifa, Spotify
Tom Earnshaw
Topics: Adult Industry, Health, Louis Theroux, Mental Health, Mia Khalifa, Spotify
Former porn star Mia Khalifa has opened up about her autism and OCD diagnoses.
The 31-year-old, who was born in Lebanon but relocated to the US at 11, embarked on a brief career in the adult industry at the age of 21.
Creating just a handful of X-rated films, they became an online sensation with millions searching the internet to watch them.
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In 2016 and 2018, Khalifa became the most-searched for adult star on various adult entertainment sites.
It essentially thrust Khalifa in to the mainstream where she became a celebrity name in her own right as a result, with her soon entering the realm of influencer.
Her path to fame wasn't without its negative moments, however.
Due to one adult video where she was seen wearing a hijab, she also became a figure of controversy and received death threats, with Khalifa telling The Washington Post in 2016 that such scenes were 'satirical' and should be viewed as such, adding: "There are Hollywood movies that depict Muslims in a much worse manner than any scene Bang Bros [the production company] could produce."
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Since leaving the adult industry, the social media star has since explored other career paths including signing up as a creator on subscription platform OnlyFans - and according to reports, it is estimated that she earns around $6.2 million (£4.64 million) a month.
This week, she sat down with journalist Louis Theroux, where she opened up on how her time in the adult industry impacted her.
She also spoke openly about her childhood and adolescent years before being diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and autism in high school.
"I was diagnosed with ADHD in seventh grade, then [diagnosed with] autism and OCD in high school," she told Theroux for The Louis Theroux Podcast on Spotify.
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"I was medicated for ADHD for my whole childhood and high school. Tics, pattern recognition, really specific and strong special interests that I become obsessive with then the OCD kicks in and it snowballs, creating things my therapist has to deal with.
"For me, it’s about recognising and not being able to stop myself and knowing that what I’m about to say is offensive and not being able to stop myself even though my brain is telling me to.
"It’s like a compulsion. But I love my special interests and being able to come home and unmask and be able to have my physical and mental ticks more freely."
During her chat with Theroux, Khalifa also spoke candidly about the mental health struggles she'd dealt with in the decade following her brief time in the adult industry.
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She said that she 'was extremely clouded by shame' and would have 'a visceral reaction' to hearing someone say her name.
Khalifa says she underwent 'nine years of therapy' to deal with how it impacted her mental health.
As well as her OnlyFans career, Khalifa is now a prominent sports commentator and live streams on Twitch to her followers.