I used to take marijuana, codeine, hard drugs – Toyin Abraham

Nollywood star, Toyin Abraham, opened up on her past when she abused hard drugs like marijuana and codeine, and was involved in other vices.

The actress made the disclosure at the 2017 edition of Success Story Africa, held at the TLC Auditorium, Lagos, on Saturday.

“You need to stop bad habits. I was involved in a lot of vices and it became worse last year,” she said at the event.

“I did drugs and I am not ashamed to say it because it’s now a thing of the past. They say codeine makes you high; I took a lot. I smoked a lot and I didn’t even know I looked horrible, because I was so skinny.

“If you came to my house last year, you would meet a lot of people and you wont want to leave because we smoked, gossiped about people and what have you.”

The actress also revealed that she once hawked plantain chips to help feed her family.

She said growing up was not easy for her because her family was not financially buoyant, although things worked out for them because they worked hard and were “spiritually buoyant”.

She also talked about the mistakes she has made in the entertainment industry and how she has not let the negativity shape her.

“I made a lot of mistakes when I began acting and that was because I did not have plans. I just wanted to be known.

“But, I now know that being popular isn’t the same thing as being successful. When I got into the industry and the fame became too much, I became irresponsible.

“I could not boast of N1 million in 2016. I was making money and I wanted to feel among. When one of our colleagues bought a car, it was trouble because we all strove to buy the same car or a bigger one.

“I had to change my circle for good and this change started in March 2017.”

Previously called Toyin Aimakhu, the actress changed her name to Toyin Abraham in December 2016.

The well-attended event also featured inspiring speeches by ace comedian, Bovi Ugboma; and Commissioner for Information, Ogun State, Dayo Adeneye, among other speakers.