Valerie Bertinelli’s Refreshing Take On Body Image Is A Lesson I Needed To Hear Right Now

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I grew up watching and admiring Valerie Bertinelli play Barbara on One Day At A Time and star in 1980s made-for-TV movies. She often appeared in my Teen Beat magazines with her future husband, rock star Eddie Van Halen. She was a celebrity I looked up to as a young girl and a woman I aspired to be like.

Almost 40 years later, Bertinelli is still a celebrity I appreciate. She isn’t afraid to talk about her personal struggles. She’s been candid about how her body image issues—especially her weight—have affected her in the past.

Bertinelli recently appeared on Kelly Clarkson’s talk show to discuss her new book Enough Already: Learning to Love The Way I Am Today. And her fresh take on self-love and body image was a lesson I needed to hear right now.

The 62-year-old actress, Food Network star, and author told Clarkson that she named her latest book Enough Already because she’s “done” with self-judging and negative talk.

“It’s just enough already. Enough. Enough getting on the scale, enough saying horrible things about myself. And just changing the perspective and changing the view and the narrative. Also, I am enough. I’m enough,” Bertinelli explained.

She’s been dealing with weight and body image issues since she was young and, along the way, has witnessed so many other women deal with the same things.

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“I watched my mom not get loved by my dad when she would gain weight. I had an elementary school teacher who would point at my belly and say, ‘You better watch that!’” Bertinelli shared.

“I didn’t even realize I had a body before that. Like I had no awareness of what I looked like. It was just let’s have fun. And then, all of a sudden, it was, ‘Oh, I’m supposed to look a certain way.’ That’s not okay.”

Bertinelli says it took her a long time to realize that she couldn’t please everyone. Ultimately, she’s choosing to accept that her worth is not based on her size.

“I learned at a young age that gaining weight was unloveable… made me unloveable. I’m still trying to purge that out of my system because that’s not true. It’s just a lie,” Bertinelli told Clarkson.

Hearing Bertinelli say these things hit home. I’ve gained a lot of weight in the past few years, and I’m currently the biggest I have ever been. I have struggled with the fact that my body doesn’t look like I think it should. But I’m my own biggest critic.

It was nice to hear someone say “I’m enough” and understand the deep meaning behind that simple message. Just like her take on her extra weight “protecting” her during difficult times, Bertinelli’s perspective on body image was a lesson every woman needs to hear.