Actress Carrie Fisher has little recollection of the bipolar episode she suffered aboard a cruise ship last month (Feb13), insisting she was "just trying to survive" the manic state she was experiencing.

The Star Wars icon sparked fears for her health when she began slurring her words during a performance on the Holland America Eurodam in the Caribbean and she was subsequently hospitalised to adjust her medication.

Fisher has now opened up about the drama, revealing to People magazine she has little recollection of the incident and was "delusional".

She says, "I went completely off the rails. I don't really remember what I did. I haven't watched the videos that people took.

"I was in a very severe manic state, which bordered on psychosis. Certainly delusional. I wasn't clear (sic) what was going on. I was just trying to survive. There are different versions of a manic state, and normally they're not as extreme as this became. I've only had this happen one other time, 15 years ago, so I didn't have a plan of action."

The 56 year old has dismissed rumours she had been drinking prior to the episode, and reveals she had actually been attending Alcoholics Anonymous (Aa) meetings onboard the vessel.

She adds, "I wasn't drunk. Anyone who knows me knows that's no (sic) possible. On the ship, I had gone to Aa meetings a couple of times, and those guys were very sweet and grounding for me. They actually came onstage and saved me."

The actress reveals she began to show potential warning signs of a bipolar episode early on in the trip, adding, "I wasn't sleeping. I was writing on everything. I was writing in books; I would have written on walls. I literally would bend over and be writing on the ground and (my assistant) would try to talk to me, and I would be unable to respond."

Fisher is now focused on managing her condition with new medication and explains, "The only lesson for me, or for anybody, is that you have to get help. It's not a neat illness. It doesn't go away."