Sam Guggenheimer has publicly confronted past behaviour she says “crossed lines”, adding she was “scared” of who she’d become.
After a month of silence, she has taken to her podcast, Hotter Than Yesterday, to explain her absence and take responsibility, admitting she “hurt people”.
Guggenheimer began by outlining ongoing legal and representation issues dating back to a stint living in London last year, saying confidentiality limited what she could say publicly, especially about a relationship breakdown with former best friend and podcast co-host Izzy Armitage.
In the contrite and detailed episode, the 23-year-old acknowledged “behaviour that crossed lines”, “repeated mistakes” and admitted because she failed to learn from them, it continued to cause harm.
The influencer conceded online and media critics calling her “mean” and “rude” weren’t imagining it.
By her own admission, those labels often fit.
She referenced a body-shaming remark by someone else that went viral after she amplified it, saying it came at a time she’d “shrunk” and had “turned into someone I could no longer recognise.
“I hated myself so much. I gave in to what the trolls online were saying about me and I definitely think I started acting in accordance.
“I deflected that onto social media as quite a hurt, defensive and sometimes a mean person.”
She said she’s returned to therapy, set firmer boundaries and rebuilt daily structure around her existing ADHD and anxiety diagnosis, adding: “I will have mental health issues for the rest of my life, but I’m here, and I’m trying, and I’m ready to show up again as my messy self and own that, but also be better.”
She admitted she got caught up in constant partying over summer – which was never really for her – and said she was pulling pin on the booze.
“I took that too far this summer, way too far, and I’m officially done.”
Guggenheimer also addressed the Coachella chatter after people accused her of begging brands for free tickets, saying she paid her own way, friends helped source a ticket, and she didn’t attend as a creator.
Now feeling settled in Sydney, Guggenheimer’s been seeing someone for a little while but is keeping it off mic for now, wary of the “Bondi bubble” she’s only now getting used to.
She’s keen to protect her privacy as she rebuilds public trust: “I’m not single,” she said but added: “I’m also not a girlfriend…yet.”