Delta Burke Says She Tried Crystal Meth for Weight Loss: ‘I Wouldn’t Eat for 5 Days’

"They were still saying, 'Your butt's too big. Your legs are too big,'" the actress recalls being told

Delta Burke, who played Suzanne Sugarbaker for five seasons on Designing Women, is opening up about the scrutiny she faced over her weight — and how she once turned to crystal meth to shed pounds during her time on another TV series, Filthy Rich.

During an appearance on the Glamorous Trash podcast, Burke, 67, told host Chelsea Devantez that while she was attending acting school in London, she was prescribed weight-loss pills. It wasn't until she returned to the United States, however, that she learned her prescription was illegal in this country.

Then, on the set of Filthy Rich, which ran for two seasons from 1982 to 1983, Burke found someone to get something similar, pills she called "Black Beauties." According to the actress, she would "take them in the morning so you won't eat." She added, "They were like medicine to me."

Related: Delta Burke Opens Up About ‘Ugly and Very Sad’ Exit from Designing Women: ‘I Simply Couldn’t Cope’

However, after building up a tolerance to them, someone on the show suggested that Burke try methamphetamine. "Nobody knew about crystal meth at the time," she said on the podcast. "[They told me,] 'You chop it up. You snort.' I said, 'I don't want to snort it.' So I put it in cranberry juice and [drank] it… and wouldn't eat for five days."

Burke added, "They were still saying, 'Your butt's too big. Your legs are too big.' And I now look back at those pictures and go, 'I was a freaking goddess.' "

After Filthy Rich ended in 1983, Burke went on to breakout success with Designing Women, earning two Emmy nominations during her time on the series, from 1986 to 1991.

Related: Tori Spelling and Shannen Doherty Recall Their Falling Out: ‘We Were Friends and Then 1 Minute We Weren’t’

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However, the continued focus on her weight ultimately contributed to her exit from the show, with Burke admitting on the podcast that she was "emotionally too fragile" to deal with the "incredibly ugly" narratives about her size.

"I thought I was stronger. I tried very hard to defend myself against lies and all the ugliness that was there and I wasn’t gonna win. I’m just an actress, you know. I don’t have any power," Burke explained, recalling that one time "on the set, when it got to be really bad, and I wasn’t handling it well with a smiling face, my whole body language changed. I would kind of hunch over... I just tried to disappear."

She added, "Hollywood will mess your head up. And I had always thought, 'I want to be a famous actress.' I thought that meant that you would be a famous and well-respected actress, but that’s not what it meant. And the moment I became famous, it was like, 'Oh no, no, no. This is not what I had in mind at all. I don’t think I want to be this anymore.' But then it’s too late."

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