Los Angeles, March 26 (IANS): Singer-actress Lady Gaga says fame made her so lonely that it was "painful".

Gaga, while discussing her rise to fame, revealed she found it hard to connect with her old friends in New York when she became an overnight star in 2008 around the release of "Just dance", reports mirror.co.uk.

"Your whole life changes. The atmosphere, the energy around you, the responsibility, it just zaps you into a rollercoaster. I don't think I will ever feel comfortable with fame," she said.

She does, however, say she is slightly more comfortable with being approached in public.

"Now 90 per cent of the time I don't give a s*** if someone has a camera in my face at the grocery store," she said.

"I used to really shut down, get emotional, run to my car and cry - hold my security guard and weep in the arms of people that I didn't even maybe really know that well yet, they just worked with me. I really had a hard time. It's quite overwhelming."

The 30-year-old, who appeared on "RuPaul's Drag Race" and chatted to the drag star after his show, admitted she also struggled to stay in touch with former friends in the club scene in New York.

"It was one of the most painful things I've emotionally had to deal with.

"It was so hard, not only because I missed them, but because I missed being there and living there, and my life there and nothing about being famous or making money ever trumped that," she said.