Reese Witherspoon has recently discussed her past experiences, revealing how surviving an abusive relationship led her to ‘rewire her brain’.
The actress, known for her role in Legally Blonde, had previously opened up in 2018 about leaving an abusive relationship during a conversation with Oprah. Now, seven years later, she reflects on overcoming those challenges in her life.
In a discussion about her career on The New York Times’ podcast, The Interview, hosted by Lulu Garcia-Navarro, the 49-year-old was asked to describe her experience with ‘lack of confidence’—a struggle not apparent to the public.
“Well, I think I was very good at being… a professional, and showing up and doing the right thing,” the Louisiana-born actress explained.
“But I wasn’t emotionally mature when I was young, and you get in relationships that don’t work for you. And sometimes you don’t even see the dynamics that are happening.
“So, when I got out of that, it took me a while to reconstitute myself. My spirit had been diminished because I thought all those awful things that person said about me were true and I had to rewire my brain.”
She went on to say: “But I was really insecure because I’ve talked to a lot of people who’ve been in abusive relationships and they can’t see it, you know, and I couldn’t… I couldn’t see it.
“[It] took me a long time to be this woman that I am now.”
The mother-of-three was then asked about her choice of the word ‘reconstitute’ and what that process entailed given her constant presence in the public eye.
“It’s very hard to be a public figure,” Witherspoon commented.
“So, I have a lot of compassion for people who live public lives and maintain privacy – it’s nearly impossible at this point.
“Everybody dehumanizing you in a certain way, like taking pictures of you like you’re an animal in the zoo instead of a person with their children or having a private moment.
“Yeah, it was hard. It was really hard… and being a mom and wanting to protect young people is hard, too, you know?”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, please remember that you are not alone. You can reach out 24 hours a day to the national domestic violence helpline at 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) for confidential support. A list of local resources is available here.