EXCLUSIVE: Inside Lindsay Lohan's Secret Torment Over Child Stardom as She Mounts Comeback From Car Crash Image
Lindsay Lohan lack of privacy drove her away from Hollywood.
Aug. 12 2025, Published 7:00 p.m. ET
Lindsay Lohan suffers PTSD "to the extreme," and blames years of relentless paparazzi attention, even though she was one of Hollywood's most off-the-rails stars, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The 39-year-old Mean Girls actress, who now lives in Dubai with her husband, Bader Shammas, 37, and their two-year-old son, Luai, has spoken candidly about the impact of her fame.
'Terrifying Moments'
Lohan now lives in Dubai with her husband and young son.
She said: "I don't ever want my family to experience being chased by the paparazzi the way I was. They were terrifying moments I had in my life – I have PTSD to the extreme from those things."
However, a source told RadarOnline.com: "Lindsay likes to talk this sort of thing up, but the reality is she attracted this kind of attention and craved it at the start of her career, with her attention-seeking crazy behavior."
Lohan became a household name in the early 2000s with films such as The Parent Trap, Freaky Friday, and Mean Girls, but her success was closely followed by a high-profile struggle with addiction and legal troubles.
Her every move was photographed and dissected by the media during her late teens and twenties, making her one of the most documented celebrities of her era.
Staying Safe In Dubai
Lohan shot to fame with 'The Parent Trap' in 1998.
Her new home of the United Arab Emirates has strict privacy laws that prohibit photographing people in public without consent.
Lohan moaned: "They were the most invasive situations. Really scary. And I pray stuff like that never comes back. It's not safe. It's not fair."
She explained she and Shammas often discuss whether to share images of their son, choosing instead to shield him from public exposure.
"We will know when the time might be right," she said. "But it's also a protection."
The former child star has taken a different approach to fame in recent years, carefully curating her social media and limiting her public appearances.
While she remains gracious with fans in person, Lohan admitted to feeling deeply unsettled by strangers secretly recording her.
"A lot of the time, someone who is with me will notice someone filming and I don't," she said.
Lohan's 'Very Normal Life'
She blames relentless paparazzi for terrifying moments in her life.
"I think I've lived with it for so long, it doesn't matter. But then, now, somebody will have a phone up all the time. That's scary. That feels very uncomfortable. I'd rather someone just ask if they can take a photo, or else you get cautious of every move you make."
Lohan's relocation to Dubai in 2014 marked a turning point in her life, offering the actor a chance to rebuild her career and personal life away from the constant glare of Hollywood.
Speaking to Live with Kelly and Mark earlier this year, she said: "It's just far away from Hollywood, and I live a very normal life. There's no worry of like, I can't go eat at this place 'cause someone's gonna take a picture of my son. And it's just... I feel very safe."
She praised the country's strict privacy culture, which she says has allowed her family to enjoy a quality of life she never thought possible, even though activists have blasted it for its human rights abuses.
"You can't take a picture of someone else if you're in a restaurant," she said. "You have to ask the person, which is a big difference from here."
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Lohan talks about her life in Dubai
Dubai's strict privacy laws make her feel safe and protected.
Lohan's comments come amid a slow-burn comeback, with recent appearances in Netflix's Irish Wish and plans for more projects in the works.
For now, however, she says her focus is firmly on her family – and staying far from the chaos of her past.
