When Paige returned to RAW 3 weeks ago, it marked the end of a tumultuous journey back to WWE’s ring. In her year-long absence, Paige endured neck surgery, a publicly volatile relationship, a sex tape scandal and two different suspensions from WWE. And now, she’s ready to discuss her arduous time away from the sport.
Paige joined former WWE ring announcer, Lillian Garcia on her podcast Chasing the Glory and candidly revealed what the past year has been like for her.
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“I literally had like a 2005 Britney Spears meltdown, I was so close to shaving my head. I just got wrapped up in drinking and like I wanted to drink some more, so I would do that kind of stuff. I just got so wrapped up in the party lifestyle and I just wanted to be cool. I finally had a bunch of friends that liked me, but they don’t really like you. They’re just like ‘Oh cool, you’re spending money on us.’ So that was pretty much it. I just felt good that I felt free, that I was reliving a childhood I never had. I was hanging with people I never thought I could never hang with before, with all these stars that I got to meet,” she explained.
WWE suspended Paige in the summer of 2016 for 30 days after she broke a “procedural issue,” but when the Anti-Diva failed a drug test a few months later, she attempted to cover up her mistake by tweeting, “Same sh*t different day. Kids..Please don’t get prescriptions or doctors notes. Not acceptable.”
However, WWE promptly responded by issuing a statement “Saraya-Jade Bevis tested positive for an illegal substance, not a prescription drug.”
Now that time has passed, Paige admitted to her lie and illicit drug use.
“Then I get in a relationship, and it was kind of an uphill battle when it came to social media. But also I had my neck, and I’d never had a day off in my life, so when my neck came along and I thought I would never be a wrestler again that put me in depression. I just felt so alone, and I was in so much pain from my neck. I was just like, ‘This is fine. One more will be absolutely fine. I can do this. I’m not addicted to this pill.’ Which I’m not because I completely stopped after I got humiliated online for that kind of stuff. But I made the dumb mistake, and it’s not even good. I didn’t even enjoy doing it,” admitted Paige.
Paige would go on to reveal that she was embarrassed for lying about her drug use not just to WWE and her fans, but also her family. However, she said that WWE routinely checked in with her during the absence, offering any help she needed.
Now that she’s back, Paige feels even closer to WWE and has the full support of the front office.
[H/T StillRealToUs]
