Mia Khalifa has spoken out to warn other women wanting to get into the adult industry after opening up about her own experiences.
The former adult movie star, 31, has been open about the effect her three-month stint in the porn industry has had on her life.
In 2014, the then-21-year-old starred in 11 adult movies over a three-month period, something that she says still haunts her to this day.
She quickly became one of the most recognizable names in the industry, but claimed she only made a total of $12,000 from her time in the industry.
Mia has revealed that she found it difficult to talk about her past as it affected her mental health.
Speaking on The Louis Theroux Podcast, she admitted: "The reason I used to have a lot of trouble talking about it is because I was extremely clouded by shame.
"I used to have a visceral reaction to even hearing the name Mia and knowing that if someone is calling me by that name, they are seeing me in a way that I don’t want to be seen in, but that had a lot more to do with my mental health than it does about the bigger picture of things."
Louis then asked her: "And if you were to discourage people from going into it, what would the grounds for that be? Like, why is it a bad idea, do you think?"
Mia responded: "I think that nine years of therapy is a lot and it's not because of what I went through in the industry. It’s what I had to go through to get to a point in my life where I feel like I am of a healthy state of mind to make decisions in my life.
"And that's how long it took me to make those decisions that are so life-changing."
She also shared her concerns for young women - even teenagers - that make the decision to star in porn without properly understanding the consequences that can bring.
"When you're 19, 20, 21 years old, 18 most of the time, that's what they're hoping for, you don't know what you're going to want for your life or what you want out of your life," she said.
"You don't even know yourself that young. You should not make life-changing decisions when you're that young."
One of the scenes that shot Mia to global fame was when she participated in a highly controversial film in which she wore a hijab while performing sexual acts alongside Sean Lawless and Julianna Vega.
As a result of sexualizing the religious head garment, Khalifa was subjected to intense backlash, which included death threats from ISIS.
She also addressed claims that a fatwa was issued against her as a result, telling Louis that she still feels nervous visiting the Middle East.
"I wouldn’t call it official, but I’ve spoken to a lot of security agencies, and their recommendation is that I don’t go [to the Middle East]," she revealed.
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"Just going to Marrakesh two years ago was a really scary experience and it wasn’t because of the city.
"It was at the airport being followed to the gate and having my passport taken away from me and taking a picture [of her passport] with their iPhone, that’s what makes you feel unsafe.
"Feeling like you were not on a soil that has an extradition treaty, not like the USA would give a f**k about me cos I think I chat more s**t about them than I do the politicians in the Middle East which is a little scary."
The Louis Theroux Podcast is available on Spotify now.
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