Ga-In Speaks Out After 5 Years “Those 3 Years Were Horrific, How Did I Even Endure It?”
On April 11, a video titled “Lim Seul-ong’s Girls Ongtop | 4th Guest Son Ga-In. A Journey Through Memories Filled with Laughter and Tears” was uploaded on the YouTube channel “Ongstyle”.
In the episode, Ga-In appeared as a guest. Lim Seul-ong introduced, “She’s a truly special friend… like a female version of Kim Tae-seong. I invited her to treat her to a glass of wine or whiskey.”
Lim Seul-ong began by noting that they had not kept in touch for several years. Ga-In responded, “I haven’t been able to tell you. But it’s not only you who I didn’t tell because actually, I haven’t told anyone.”
She continued, “I went through some incidents and difficult times, both mentally and physically. Depression, insomnia and panic disorder—these are things that seem to come with our job. Eventually, I just started staying at home all the time. When I felt myself slipping into a slump, my mom, who was running a store, dragged me out there.”
She recalled, “At first, I told her I couldn’t go. There were 6~7 employees at the store, and there were bad articles about me coming out. I had said I wouldn’t go anywhere for a month. But my mom dragged me out the very next day. That first week was hell. I figured all the employees had seen the articles and knew who I was. Just working alongside them was incredibly hard for me.”
“But then I started working almost every day. I would come home exhausted and sleep without checking my phone. I began to have more and more responsibilities, and I’d go home with the employees at the end of the day. I’d start at 4 PM and finish at 11 PM, and by the time I got home, I had no room left to feel lonely.”
She went on “My mom’s way of pulling me back into life turned out to be the perfect kind of education for me. I often wonder what would have happened to me if not for that. I feel like crying”, holding back tears. “I know my mom must have had a hard time behind the scenes too. But I think that moment really saved me.”
She added, “I’m so grateful to the people who recognized me but didn’t say anything. The employees never told anyone either. I want to take this opportunity to thank you all deeply. I’m also thankful to my mom if it weren’t for her, I don’t know where I’d be now. Those three years… they were horrific. How did I even endure them?”
Ga-In reflected, “No matter how much I’m a celebrity, I’m still a human being—Son Ga-In. This time, I realized I need to care for both sides of myself. What happened felt like the result of neglecting the human Son Ga-In for too long.”
Lim Seul-ong, visibly emotional, mentioned how he had tried reaching out many times during her silence. “I felt like she must be lonely. We’re very close, so not being able to contact her worried me. I just instinctively wanted to remind her that people are still thinking of her.”
Previously, in 2021, Ga-In’s agency revealed that she had received a summary indictment and paid a fine of 1 million KRW for her involvement in a propofol case.
At the time, the agency stated, “Due to accumulated injuries during her career, she suffered from severe pain, depression and serious sleep disorders. Amid that struggle, she made a poor choice. From now on, both Ga-In and Mystic Story will do their best with sincerity and maturity to return to the public and fans.”
Since then, Ga-In had disappeared from both social media and broadcast appearances—until now.