LeANN RIMES
“Since I was a child, my self-confidence was based on what others thought of me. So the public shaming penetrated on a deep level. There was such a weight on my marriage and my friendships because I was looking to them to help me. I needed to be by myself and figure my issues out on my own. I wouldn’t trade anything I’ve been through. Every time I sink back into depression. I think, ‘What’s the lesson here?’ There is always something good, if we look for it.” People Magazine
PAUL BETTANY
“I used to hide in the deputy headmaster’s office during recess because I was very bullied, and I was just shy. I couldn’t talk to anybody. Life’s curly. Don’t stress too much. The greatest thing as I hurdle towards old age is that now I feel less embarrassed about everything. It just all goes away.” People Magazine
JESSICA ALBA
“I’ve been wildly insecure throughout my life about various things, but I was never so insecure that I’m not going to try something. The fact that people didn’t believe that I was capable of something probably drove me to fully realize what I had in my head and hit goals. I think the resistance fired me up and gave me energy to prove to myself that I could do it. But that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t still insecure about myself physically. I was really shy in a lot of ways and a late bloomer.” People Magazine
AKIRA AKBAR
“Act confident, even if you’re not. When I was younger, I was bullied because I was small. And that made me act small. One day, a girl who I thought was my friend actually picked me up and put me in a trash can, Literally. And then I told my mom about it, she was like, ‘What? That is unacceptable.’ That’s when I decided I wasn’t going to act small anymore. I started sticking up for myself and built up my confidence. Now that’s a superpower.” GL
ZOE KRAVITZ
“The fact that people don’t think what they say affects a celebrity because you’re not a person to them is crazy. I’m a human being. I want to f***ing defend myself. The fact that I’m like, ‘Should I have not worn that?’ No, I do what I want to do, and I make what I want to make, and if I’m now starting to be afraid of what other people are going to say or think, I’m no longer doing my job as an artist. I’m not experiencing the world and putting that into art. I’m walking on eggshells. F*** that. So, I needed to take a minute” ELLE
TIFFANY HADDISH
“I was actually court-ordered to go to therapy as a teenager, but I didn’t really use it. I just was quiet, sitting there coloring, putting puzzles together, but I wouldn’t talk to the therapist. But when I was 21, I had a breakdown, so I went back and really took it seriously because I felt like dying. It still makes me emotional when I think about it. I didn’t know why God put me on this planet to hurt so much? Why I had to be everybody’s punching bag. That’s where I let it sit. Right before I turned 18, I wanted to kill myself. My grandma told me I wasn’t allowed. She made me realize I was valuable. You know as a black woman, we don’t talk about certain things like being molested or raped because we’re embarrassed or we think it will bring shame to the family or whatever. But I needed to talk about certain things. I think the biggest lesson for me is learning that it’s okay to say I’m not okay.” Cosmopolitan Magazine
WINONA RYDER
“I remember I was playing this character who ends up getting tortured in a Chilean prison in the 1994 drama The House of Spirits. I would look at these fake bruises and cuts on my face from the shoot, and I would struggle to see myself as this little girl. ‘Would you be treating this girl like you’re treating yourself?’ I remember looking at myself and saying, ‘This is what I’m doing to myself inside.’ Because I just wasn’t taking care of myself.” BAZAAR
MICHAEL J. FOX
“Optimism is really rooted in gratitude. Optimism is sustainable when you keep coming back to gratitude, and what follows from that is acceptance. Accepting that this has happened, and you accept it for what it is. It doesn’t mean that you can’t endeavor to change. It doesn’t mean you have to accept it as a punishment or a penance, but just put it in its proper place. Then see how much the rest of your life you have to thrive in, and then you can move on.” People Magazine
VALERIE BERTINELLI
“Joy is available to anyone who wants it without having to fix or change anything about yourself. Yes, I could lose ten pounds, and wouldn’t complain if I lost twenty, but my outlook is not dependent on it. Today, in this body, I am ready to embrace myself as joyful and happy. I don’t want to waste time anymore.” People Magazine
JO PLACENCIO
“I start my day with a series of positive affirmations: ‘I am grateful.’ Your body and mind believe everything you tell them, so I focus on say all the right things! People Magazine