American Idol Judges Gush About Adam Lambert, Admit to Painkiller Addiction

A few hours prior to tonight's performance show (visit our site in the morning for a detailed recap!), a pair of American Idol judges are in the news.

First, Simon Cowell appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. He touched on the following topics:

• Kara DioGuardi will return next season as a judge;

• Ryan Seacrest has lost popularity because he enters the stage on a staircase: “It made him appear more pompous, obnoxious, taking himself a bit seriously,” Cowell said. “You don’t give yourself that type of entrance.”

• Adam Lambert is brave: “I like the fact he’s fearless. He’s not playing it safe. A lot of the people that take part in these shows want to sing ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’ every week because it’s a sappy song. He’s got guts.”

Meanwhile, in a more serious admission, Paula Abdul has finally opened up about her painkiller addiction.

In the latest issue of Ladies Home Journal, the singer says she was diagnosed with "reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome," in 2005. It's a a chronic neurological disorder that causes severe pain, often leading to teeth-chattering and shingles-like lesions for Abdul.

As a result, Paula wore a patch that delivered a pain medication about 80 times more potent than morphine, while also taking a nerve medication to relieve the issues associated with the disease.

Also, as a dancer, Abdul said she relied on numerous painkillers - including regular shots of lidocaine - and Chinese medicine to get her through her difficult routines. She checked into the La Costa Resort and Spa last Thanksgiving.

"I could have killed myself," Abdul tells the magazine. "Withdrawal – it's the worst thing. I was freezing cold, then sweating hot, then chattering and in so much pain. It was excruciating.... At my very core. I did not like existing the way I had been."

We often mock Abdul, but we're very glad to hear she's overcome this hard time in her life.