Teen Mom co-star Amber Portwood, 23, candidly opened up about being a mother in her first interview since being released from prison for domestic violence and drug possession on Nov. 4.

Portwood, who spent 17 months behind bars at Indiana's Rockville Correctional Facility, shared with In Touch Weekly, in an article published Wednesday that she now believes she has gotten a second chance at being an amazing mother for her five-year-old daughter Leah, something she did not care about before.

"Before prison, I never thought about Leah. I was addicted to drugs and didn't care about anything else. Prison saved my life," Portwood said.

Portwood was sentenced to five years in prison in January of 2013, but was let out on parole. She confessed that before going to prison she struggled with being addicted to prescription pills like Vicodin and Ambien. Her daughter only came to see her three times.

Portwood revealed that being in prison was an experience that almost broke her.

"It felt like a nightmare. Feeling humiliated and vulnerable (from the strip search), you literally have nothing and walk around like a zombie," she said. "There were times I reached a breaking point. I knew the only person who could get me out of there was me."

Now that she is a free woman, Portwood is looking to pay it forward and help others who struggle with addictions as well. She has joined forces with an organization called Never Too Late that will launch a social media campaign to help others.

Chief Communications Officer of the Indiana Department of Correction told Us Weekly that Portwood will still "be subject to random drug screening."

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