Danielle Fishel Opens Up About Weight Struggles

is best known as the free-spirited Topanga Lawrence on Boy Meets World, but few knew she was wrestling with a body image crisis behind-the-scenes.

The Teen Beat podcast host, 44, spoke out about the scrutiny placed on her during the final years of the 1990s sitcom, telling Us Weekly her insecurities nearly ended her career as she knew it then.

'I was aware, even if nobody said it to me directly… that as far as the people in power were concerned, my body was a problem,' said Fishel, who is in a more .

'I remember around the time of [1998's] prom episode being aware that they didn't want me wearing something sleeveless.'

Fishel, who was 12 when she was cast as Topanga in Boy Meets World in 1993, played the iconic role until 2000 when she was 19, and revealed these years were emotionally daunting especially for a girl who had put on weight.

She admitted she felt 'no longer attractive' because of her weight gain, which was noticeable enough for the producers to create a storyline around it.

'I just so did not want to be there; I was uncomfortable on set every day,' Fishel shared. 'There was this feeling that I was no longer attractive, because I had gained weight. I just wanted to be anywhere other than on set. I was probably a curmudgeon.'

Producers put a spotlight on Fishel's weight gain in a season seven episode titled She's Having My Baby Back Ribs.

In the episode, Topanga and Eric – played by Will Friedle – go on a diet after feeling self-conscious about their weight gain, and Cory – played by Ben Savage – mistakes her dieting and weight gain for pregnancy, resulting in a comedic turn of events.