Trisha Goddard’s daughter reveals she was hooked on booze, drugs and sex after spiralling out of control aged 12
Billie Dee Gianfrancesco, 29, racked up debts of £25,000 after splashing out on the likes of cocaine, MDMA and cannabis
TRISHA Goddard’s daughter has revealed the booze, drug and sex nightmare that left her in £25,000 of debt and attempting to end her own life.
Troubled Billie Dee Gianfrancesco, 29, turned to alcohol from the age of 12, during the height of her mum’s fame as a daytime TV talk show host.
Her toxic relationship with drink began during a luxury holiday in the Caribbean when she raided the hotel minibar, leading on to her stealing booze from her parents’ home back in the UK.
And when her mum mistakenly gave her painkillers containing codeine to deal with painful periods, she became addicted and would steal more drugs from her parents’ and friends’ prescriptions.
Speaking to about her spiralling debts and wild lifestyle, she said: “I was so depressed I didn’t think I’d be around to pay them off anyway.”
During her school years at £5,000-a-term Langley School in Norfolk she tried to commit suicide.
She said: “I became very promiscuous. Once I got with a few boys in one night at different times.
“It was a small place, the whole school found out. I did try to commit suicide.
“I took medication and downed it with spirits. Then I knew I didn’t want to die so I made myself sick. I didn’t tell my mum, I didn’t want people to think I was being a drama queen.”
Her problems continued while she studied English Literature at Royal Holloway, University of London, and then in her former PR job for Ministry Of Sound.
At her lowest, Billie told how she bought 700 laughing gas canisters a week and would spent £150 on weed, £100 on cocaine, £40 on MDMA and £70 on alcohol, admitting she’d “gone crazy.”
Aged 26 she sought help from addiction charity Port of Call and went on to be diagnosed with borderline personality disorder as well as complex post traumatic stress disorder.
In the three years since, she’s been undergoing therapy and has been sober since last July.
The Port of Call team all have personal experience of addiction.
Founder Martin Preston said: “Addiction is a shame-based illness. What keeps people stuck is that they don’t talk about it.
“They think there’s something wrong about it or bad about them.
“This is why it is so important for all of us to start talking about addiction openly and dropping the judgement.”
Trisha, 61, has had her own addiction demons in the past although now lives a clean lifestyle.
The star previously revealed she runs at least five miles a day, practises resistance-based workouts while she has cut out meat and soya from her diet in order to keep herself in tip top form.
The mother-of-two was first diagnosed with cancer in 2008 but her battle against the disease was just one of the many hurdles she has faced in life.
Trisha previously suffered domestic violence at the hand of a former partner and then went on to battle a drug addiction.
While her younger sister – who had schizophrenia – died from complications which arose from self-inflicted injuries leading to the TV host battling depression.
The chat show host, who is mother to Billie and Madison, 22, is now living in Connecticut after moving to America in 2010.
Port of Call works with people battling addiction and their families, offering advice on treatment services in the UK, via a and helpline.
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