Kathy Griffin Calls Her Pill Addiction In Her Late 50s 'Almost Comical'

Kathy Griffin may have experienced some dark days in her past, but she's now in a place where she can make light of her ordeal.

The 63-year-old comedian and actress opened up — and even cracked jokes — about her addiction to pills and past suicide attempts during her appearance on Thursday's episode of The New York Times' "Sway" podcast, according to People.

She mentioned her drug abuse while talking about the controversy that followed after she posed with a fake bloody head meant to represent then-President Donald Trump in 2017, which pushed her into a dark place. She even tried to end her own life following the uproar, she revealed.

"I think that I'm probably an addictive person, you know," Griffin told host Kara Swisher. "But you have to admit, it's almost, like, comical. Like, I went in the hospital for pill addiction at 59 years old. Who the hell becomes a junkie in, like, their late 50s? Me."

Continuing the conversation surrounding her 2017 controversy, Griffin admitted that the 2017 fallout did not only rob her of several business opportunities but also put her under Secret Service's watch. "I didn't know what to do with myself," the "My Life on the D-List" star explained.

"I was just such a crazy workaholic. And all of a sudden, I had this time on my hands, and then I was depressed, and things just weren't looking up," she continued.

"And then, you fall into the, like, life will be better for my husband without me around," Griffin then said of her love Randy Bick, whom she married on New Year's Day in 2020. "It just came to a point where I really, I was convinced, like, I've had a good run on this planet, and now it's time for me to go."

She went on to explain that the pandemic also played a part in her addiction to pills. "Not to blame COVID, but then COVID also is like, just laying around all day and trying to figure out life. So that was rough, although it was a good thing, ultimately, and it was sobering, quite literally," she said.

When Swisher asked her what her poison of choice was, Griffin said she was taking Oxycontin and benzodiazepines, including Valium, Klonopin and Ativan, as well as Adderall and Provigil. "I was doing, like, a rich white lady speedball, basically," the "Search Party" actress said.

Griffin also noted that she got "addicted like the classic story." She had injuries for which she was put on medication, and soon enough, her addiction "got away from me."

"Like, I kind of knew it was getting bad, but then I didn't," she shared.

At one point, Griffin wanted to die, but now, after beating lung cancer, she is looking forward to making the most of her life.

The comedian and actress announced in August 2021 that she was diagnosed with lung cancer and had to undergo surgery. In an interview with ABC News that same month, she opened up about her cancer battle as well as her addiction.

"The irony is not lost on me that, a little over a year ago, all I wanted to do was die. And now, all I wanna do is live," she said back then.

If you have thoughts of suicide, confidential help is available for free at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Call 1-800-273-8255. The line is available 24 hours, every day.