The real-life member of the infamous Bling Ring group says she used alcohol and drugs as a way to block the painful memories of the disturbing events.
- Oct 1, 2013
AceShowbiz - Alexis Neiers, the real-life Bling Ring member who was featured in reality show "Pretty Wild", opens up about the sexual molestation she endured as a kid. The former E! star reveals that she suffered abuse at the hands of a close family member who was much older than her.
In a lengthy blog post titled "Please Don't Touch Me", Neiers explains how the disturbing events of her childhood led her to alcohol and drugs. She says she began having night terrors about the sexual attacks that happened to her as a child when she was a teen.
"I began drinking and using at a young age to escape," the TV personality revisits the painful memories of her past. "It took years of depression and heroin addiction for me to understand the trauma that drew me to substances that could leave me numb."
She kept the traumatizing events secret for years until she entered rehab and opened it up to her therapist. Still, she wasn't sure if she should file a police report. "At the time, I thought, 'Oh well, he would only do that to me. He would never hurt anyone else,' " she recalls.
"After all, I had seen this family member a few times in the last ten years, and he seemed normal. When I heard he had a child, I decided I couldn't report the sexual abuse that happened nearly two decades ago - I felt guilty," the 22-year-old explains further.
"But I knew in my heart that, at the end of the day, this man has a child - a child who is the same age I was when he started abusing me. I would feel responsible if anything happened," she adds, before concluding, "To prevent him from abusing other children and to begin the healing process, I had to speak up."
Neiers, along with her girl pals, was notoriously known for robbing the homes of celebrities like Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom and Lindsay Lohan. She and her gang pled no contest to felony burglary charges in 2009. She now works as a drug and alcohol counselor.
The story of her group was adapted into the big screen in "The Bling Ring directed by Sofia Coppola. It was released earlier this year with Emma Watson among the cast ensemble.
