Paris Hilton: I Used to Act Dumb

Reality star and hotel heir Paris Hilton managed to get in contact with talk show queen Barbara Walters by phone Sunday, just a day after Paris released a statement where she said she hoped the media would focus on "more important things" than her prison sentence.

Walters asked Paris what happened in the jail that led to her being reassigned to her home. She said she had not been wailing, sobbing or screaming as had been described.

"But," she said, "I was not eating or sleeping. I was severely depressed and felt as if I was in a cage. I was not myself. It was a horrible experience."

Barbara Walters also asked Paris how this ordeal has changed her.

"I'm not the same person I was," Paris answered. "I used to act dumb. It was an act. I am 26 years old, and that act is no longer cute. It is not who I am, nor do I want to be that person for the young girls who looked up to me. I know now that I can make a difference, that I have the power to do that. I have been thinking that I want to do different things when I am out of here. I have become much more spiritual. God has given me this new chance."

When asked what things she might want to do, Paris said she would like to help in the fields of breast cancer or multiple sclerosis.