Chloe Dykstra‘s world changed forever after writing an essay for Medium detailing alleged emotional abuse and sexual assault from an unnamed ex-boyfriend, whom many speculated to be Chris Hardwick.
A move that was intended to bring her peace, brought the exact opposite — including harassment from all corners of the Internet.
Related: Chloe Releases Statement Confirming That She Did Not Participate In Chris Hardwick Investigation
The 30-year-old sat down with Time, and recounted the awful moment that harassment began:
“I opened trending [on Twitter] and saw my face. It was the most terrifying thing I have ever experienced. I was just like, ‘No, no, no.'”
The actress initially received some support from fans, applauding her for speaking her truth. But then things quickly got ugly:
“Then the tide kind of shifted. I was attacked relentlessly. There was an organized group of people online whose sole purpose was to try to disprove me. I was terrified people were going to figure out where I lived.”
In his official statement back in July, Hardwick said he was ‘blindsided’ by his ex’s claims and denied sexually assaulting Chloe. But amid the ongoing investigation, the Talking Dead host went on to lose his hosting gig of the popular AMC after show and a moderator slot at San Diego Comic-Con this year.
But what Dykstra almost lost, was her life.
The relentless online harassment from Hardwick’s supporters pushed Dykstra to her low point:
“After months of reading horrible things about myself, I got to such a low point that I considered ending it,” she said. “I didn’t really have guidance because you can’t really Google, ‘How to handle being an accuser?'”
Wow. The internet can be such a cruel place at times. We’re grateful things didn’t turn out for the worse.
[Image via WENN.]