MTV's Liz Lee Says She 'Spent All My Money on Drugs' Before Sobriety

My Life as Liz alum Liz Lee is checking back in and sharing her sobriety journey, 14 years after her MTV run ended.

“The more I post, the less I give a s***,” she told her followers in the first of a series of videos posted via TikTok on July 15. “The overall sort of narrative arc of my life is sort of interesting because I had my own TV show and then I spent all my money on drugs.”

Lee became the star of her own MTV reality show as a high school senior in Texas in 2010, with the cameras following her to college the next year at Pratt Institute in New York. She’s kept a low profile since then, but is starting to shed light on what she’s been up to.

“And then I ended up living in my car. Then, I ended up going to rehab… and then I got sober, and it saved my life,” she said.

Her drug problem, she said, began when she was 20 and went through a breakup with a 34-year-old man who “was quite famous as a director and comedian.”

“It just ate me up. I didn’t know how to talk about it and so I had to cope with drugs,” she said.

After that, Lee was able to stay sober for more than nine years, getting her master’s in the process. She relapsed “right after” sharing her master’s thesis.

“I had my birthday party… and I relapsed on ketamine at a wine bar,” she said. “I just feel like snorting is a heavy indicator that it was clearly a relapse and did count.”

“I was able to control and manage my drug use,” she continued. “And I was like, ‘Maybe after nine years, I kind of rewired the pathways in my brain and I’m not an addict anymore.’ Girl.”

At that time, Lee admits she “alienated” herself from those around her because “everybody was totally freaked out by me because I was constantly going into K-holes.”

“I got to go to an intensive outpatient program and sober living combo treatment situation. I’m living my best life,” she announced. “I’ve been sober for nine months. I did EMDR, CBT, DBT, TMS… like I got my brain zapped. I did therapy every day… and I thought maybe all of these acronyms cured my alcoholism. So I can do whippets… they’re harmless.”

“Five seconds into whippets, I bought ketamine on my retail store budget,” she said.

The relapse was another setback, but it came with a silver lining.

“It really had to happen because it made me realize that no matter what I do, I’m stuck with this disease,” she said. “It’s not curable. I have to act accordingly, and I have to treat my disease.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health and/or substance use, you are not alone. Seek immediate intervention — call 911 for medical attention; 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline; or 1-800-662-HELP for the SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) National Helpline. Carrying naloxone (Narcan) can help reverse an opioid overdose.