Valerie Bertinelli Shares the Heartwarming Story Behind Her 64th Birthday Underwear Mirror Selfie

Valerie Bertinelli discussed her viral mirror selfie during an appearance on “The Drew Barrymore Show,” expressing pride in her body at age 64.

The TV star is embracing her body’s natural changes and rejects societal pressure to look a certain way.

Valerie Bertinelli previously addressed social media criticism of her body in an Instagram post, emphasizing self-acceptance and personal growth.

Valerie Bertinelli opened up about the viral underwear selfie she posted on Instagram during an appearance on “The Drew Barrymore Show.”

When asked by co-host Ross Matthews about her decision to post the mirror selfie, Bertinelli explained, “I have been coming to terms with my body now, aging, and I saw myself in the light, and I went, ‘Oh, I’m not mad at that.”

The Food Network star stood up and lifted her red jumper to proudly show her stomach, receiving cheers from the audience as she joked: “Like all those, you know, planks and sit-ups I’ve done, you can see underneath the saggy skin.”

Bertinelli then noted that she is “proud” of her body. She said: “I have to say it’s 64 years of gravity. It’s science. If you focus in on that picture, you’re gonna see the little saggies, and I’m proud of them because I’m 64. It’s a belly.”

During the chat, Bertinelli also addressed the criticism she received on social media after posting her viral underwear selfie.

She shared how the comments, which ranged from calling her “too fat” to “out of shape” or “ugly,” didn’t bother her as much anymore.

“So, what I’ve learned is, my dad was wrong. You can’t make everybody like you,” she said, per Page Six. “And I’m OK with that, finally, at this age.”

The actress expressed her frustration with societal pressures to look a certain way, stating, “I don’t like that I was part of that manipulation of our brains of, we have to look a certain way. We have to be a certain weight.”

Bertinelli also shared her newfound self-acceptance during the interview: “I’m a size 10. How is that too thin? How is that too fat? I’m just me. It’s my body.”

Bertinelli made headlines in early December when she shared a candid mirror selfie in black lingerie standing in front of a bathroom sink while holding a box of hair dye.

In the caption, she reflected on her body’s journey over the years, writing: “At some point, I will talk about the madness my body has been through this year.”

Expressing a sense of acceptance and appreciation for herself, she added: “But right now every lump bump wrinkle, and saggy part of me just feels acceptance and simple appreciation to be standing in front of a mirror in a hotel bathroom in downtown Manhattan ready to color my roots late on a Monday night.”

The day after sharing her empowering mirror selfie, Bertinelli took to Instagram to respond to critics.

She urged followers to embrace self-compassion, writing, “To all of you that would sit in judgment of my body, the photo, and my reason for posting it, I hope you find a place in your heart to not judge yourself as harshly as you judge others.”

Reflecting on her lifelong experiences with judgment, she said: “I have dealt with judgment my entire life starting from when I was a young girl. It has taken me a long time to realize that my judgment, with patient discernment, is the only judgment that counts.”

She added: “… It’s taken me almost 3 years of emotional labor to get to this point mentally, and for the first eight months of this year, I had physical setbacks, and for the first time in my life, I love my body as it is.”

In an Instagram post, Bertinelli celebrated two years of “freedom” after her divorce from Tom Vitale.

Reflecting on her journey, she shared an uplifting message with her followers: “I didn’t know how I was going to get through it, but I knew that somehow I would.”

The “Hot In Cleveland” actress continued: “Today marks two years of freedom. Two years of walking through self-doubt and doing my best to get to the other side. Two years of knowing that I didn’t deserve to tolerate the intolerable.”

Bertinelli also acknowledged her ongoing journey of healing, adding, “Two years of working through shame and self-loathing (Still working on that part…).

“Two years of working to find my true self,” she noted, referring to her challenging marriage to Vitale, which officially ended in November 2022.