Jamie-Lynn Sigler developed deep insecurities as a result of the scrutiny she faced on The Sopranos.
The 44-year-old actress played Meadow Soprano in the acclaimed HBO mafia drama and has reflected on how being "heavily scrutinised and made fun of" due to her appearance took a toll on her mental health.
Jamie-Lynn told the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast: "I had somebody call me live on a radio show and tell me that they had bets with their friends how much weight I had gained in between seasons.
"It was kind of ruthless back then, for sure. You felt immense pressure.
"I was already coming into it not looking like a Hollywood star and how these people that I was seeing on the CW shows that I loved looked like. And then to have all that confirmed to my face was really difficult."
Sigler explained how she was left "devastated" by some of the things she had read about herself and ultimately ended up struggling with an eating disorder, detailed in her new memoir And So It Is... A Memoir of Acceptance and Hope.
She said: "I think unfortunately for many of the things that I talk about and I struggled with in the book, I went through them all alone in my own head and in my own way.
"I just didn't know how to ask for help. I didn't know how to open myself up. You know, I think the eating disorder would have happened regardless of the show. I think it was just the time and my fragile way of thinking that led me into that space."
Jamie-Lynn told host Amanda Hirsch how she lost a lot of weight and got a nose job between the pilot episode of The Sopranos and the remainder of the first season, which almost resulted in her being fired from the show as concerned showrunners spoke to her mother regarding the change in her appearance.
She said: "I'm 40 pounds lighter with a different face pretty much.
"I knew that they were confronting her about my size and my face and I was convinced I was gonna get fired. And they toyed with that idea, rightfully so."
Sigler continued: "I don't know why the decision was made to keep me. I'm obviously grateful that they did but that sort of, unfortunately, set the tone for me for the rest of the shooting of that show that I just felt so less than. I felt like such a burden, I felt like such a problem, I felt just so undeserving and so not good enough to be on that show."
