Drug dependence began to weaken Monroe’s health
From the early 1950s Marilyn Monroe relied on several different medications to cope with the pressures of her career, her relationships, and her fragile mental condition. Following the collapse of her marriage to DiMaggio her use of prescription drugs increased. She began studying acting under Lee Strasberg and his wife, Paula Strasberg. Strasberg demanded Monroe enter psychoanalysis. Strasberg believed psychoanalysis would help Marilyn confront her personal demons, and the experience could then be used to improve her performances as an actor.
Instead, Marilyn grew increasingly unwell, both emotionally and physically. The legal battle with Fox added to her troubles. By the end of 1955 MMP and Fox arrived at an agreement which led to a new contract for Marilyn. In October of that year her divorce from DiMaggio was finalized, and Marilyn’s relationship with Arthur Miller grew deeper. Miller had been listed as a communist by the FBI, which then opened a file on Marilyn which eventually grew to hundreds of entries and continued to the end of her life in 1962.