Jennifer Love Hewitt went through a lot "mentally, physically and emotionally" in 2023.
The 44-year-old actress shared a cryptic post on Instagram on New Year's Day (01.01.24), in which she hinted at a difficult year but did not give details.
She wrote: "This year I went thru a lot no one knew about. And was grateful for that privacy. I had the greatest time being a mommy at home with my kids. Learned to be a better baker. Learned it’s okay to take time for myself mentally, physically and emotionally. Did a lot of praying and manifesting. Belly laughed more than ever. Had the longest cold of my life. Was forced to have more faith than normal. Learned to love working out as a gain for my mental health. Took chances on myself and my bigger dreams. Sat deeper in grief and was able to let more go. Felt my mom around us and saw signs that she was. Said goodbye to things that don’t serve positivity in my life and made room for lots of good things in 2024. Celebrated 10 years with my guy. Got some tattoos. And truly let whatever I needed to learn teach me. And so here I am. Happy, blessed, grateful and filled with hope. I will be praying our world gets better this year and everyone sees less pain, fear and heartbreak. Love to all and Happy New Year!"
Meanwhile, Jennifer recently revealed she wants fans to stop the "weird" sexualisation of her younger self.
The 44-year-old actress addressed the way people fixate on her appearance in her early 20s, and admitted even in her late teens she was confused by the attention she got.
Appearing on the 'Inside of You' podcast, she said: "She was a looker. But also that 23- and 25-year-old wasn't in her body...
"I felt watched. I felt like I had to be everything for everybody all the time.
"I was called sexy before I ever knew what being sexy was. I was 17 years old on the cover of Maxim, and I had no idea why."
She filmed 'Heartbreakers' at 23 years old, and can remember being asked to "be sexier" on screen, but she didn't understand the instruction.
She said: "I know that I'm supposed to be this thing for people but I don't know what that means.'"
It means she is uncomfortable with fans still wanting her to be that same person two decades later.
She explained: "It's weird for me when people are like, ‘That's the girl that we wanted you to be'.
"That girl was so insecure and so confused and trying her best. But this girl — who may not look [that] way — I like who I am. I feel good. I'm fine."
While she has grown to feel more confident in her skin, she admitted she has her "moments" where the self doubt creeps in.
She added: "I mean, not every day, but you know, I have my moments. There's definitely times where I look in the mirror and I'm like, 'Oh, dear god, what has happened?' "
Now, her response to any critics is that it's "your problem", joking: "Because I'm 44, and this is what I look like."
However, becoming a mother - Jennifer has kids Autumn James, 10, Atticus James, eight, and Aidan James, two, with her husband Brian Hallisay - has also altered her perception.
She said: "I'm a mother of a girl, and it's dangerous what we put on people. It's dangerous to say to women, ‘You can't look like you're not 22 to me anymore.'"
