Lindsay Lohan Cites ‘Extreme PTSD’ from Relentless Paparazzi Pursuit

Lindsay Lohan is getting brutally honest. Who would’ve thought that behind the bubbly and confident child star from The Parent Trap was a teenager battling paparazzi flashbulbs and a media circus more aggressive than a shark on a feeding frenzy? Lohan, the Hollywood “It Girl” of the early 2000s, has opened up about the lasting effects of those “terrifying moments” she experienced as a young celebrity. And trust me, her words go deep.

What Did Lindsay Lohan Say? Interview Breakdown

In a candid interview with The Sunday Times, Lohan didn’t just spill the usual surface-level celebrity stories. She dove right into the chaos of having her personal life plastered on every gossip site and tabloid like some kind of free-for-all. She describes the paparazzi culture of that era as an invasion of humanity itself. And yes, you can almost feel the exhaustion and anxiety dripping from her words.

I don’t ever want my family to experience being chased by paparazzi the way I was… I have PTSD to the extreme from those things.

Yikes. Imagine trying to live your life while photographers jump out of bushes to catch you mid-bite of a cheeseburger.

Now, at 39, Lohan isn’t just juggling press duties for her long-awaited Freaky Friday sequel (Freakier Friday… the title could not sound more Disney if it tried) but also the responsibilities of raising her two-year-old son, Luai. Together with her husband, financier Bader Shammas, she’s navigating what it means to protect her child from the ugly side of fame.

Malicious gossip writers and intrusive camera lenses? No thanks. It’s family-first in the Lohan-Shammas household, where they strategize endlessly on how to maintain boundaries and give their kid some semblance of normalcy. Kudos to them for that.

 

What Lindsay Lohan Learned From Her Journey

Here’s some hope: Lohan openly acknowledges how social media – for all its dumpster-fire moments – has actually helped celebrities take back control of their narrative. She stated:

Now, because of social media, people can tell their own story in the way that you want it to be told.

And honestly? She’s not wrong. Sure, Instagram can be a toxic black hole sometimes, but at least it gives public figures a chance to push back against misinformation and set the record straight… when TikTok drama channels aren’t busy dissecting their lives, that is.

One thing is clear from her interview, though. Lohan isn’t afraid to speak out. She’s refreshingly honest about the lack of a guidebook for handling fame or balancing a personal life in the public eye. Lohan admits that her younger self didn’t know how to separate the two, and why would she? Nobody hands out a “Fame 101” brochure when you land your first breakout role. Logan admitted that it was a difficult for her as because nobody taught her to balance it.

It’s a statement that feels oddly comforting but also infuriating. Yet through it all, Lohan remains extremely thankful for the small wins and the people who stuck by her.

Lindsay’s Freaky Friday co-star, Jamie Lee Curtis, for instance, has been something of a guiding light. According to Lohan, Jamie Lee was a “safe space” during her more turbulent years.

Fun fact: it was Curtis who convinced Lohan to take the plunge and sign onto the Freaky Friday sequel. Imagine that phone call. “Hey, Lindsay, it’s me, Jamie Lee. I’m your rock, your hype woman, and also… we’re making a sequel. Pack a bag.” Of course, Lohan being Lohan, she played coy with Curtis when the offer first came up. (Pregnancy will do that to you!)

But now that the timing’s finally “on her side,” she’s back in the game, ready to show the world a side of her we haven’t seen before. If you’re curious about what that looks like, you might want to mark your calendar for August 8th when Freakier Friday releases in theaters. Will her comedic timing still hit? Will her on-screen chemistry with Curtis shine as brightly as it did 20 years ago? Only time will tell, my freaky friends.

You might’ve thought you knew Lindsay Lohan, but this new chapter? It’s an entirely new page – and we’re all just along for the grand ride.