Getting pregnant at 22 was terrifying – Reese Witherspoon

Actress Reese Witherspoon has revealed that when she got pregnant at 22, she was terrified. Appearing on The Drew Barrymore Show on Tuesday, the Oscar-winning actress confessed that her life isn’t nearly as put together as fans might believe. Her best example she could give was when she was pregnant with her now 21-year-old daughter Ava Phillippe.

“I got pregnant when I was 22 years old,” Witherspoon said, adding that she was “terrified” at the time. “I didn’t know how to balance work and motherhood.”

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 Wow! How is it possible that this little girl is now 21 years old? Happy Birthday to my sweet girl who has become the most incredible young woman. 💫 Her kindness, her compassion, and her huge heart never cease to amaze me. Ava, there aren’t enough words to describe how proud I am of everything you’ve already accomplished. I cannot wait to see ALL the Good you will put into this world. I love you so much @avaphillippe 💗
 
A post shared by  Reese Witherspoon (@reesewitherspoon) on Sep 9, 2020 at 7:45am PDT
 

Witherspoon said that welcoming Ava into the world also cast a shadow of doubt on her budding acting career; confessing that back then, “I didn’t have any real power, leverage within my industry. I hadn’t established myself as someone who could demand” certain things, such as ensuring a movie shoots closer to her child’s school.

“I was just like every other mom trying to figure it out,” said the 44-year-old mom of three.

Now that the Big Little Lies star can balance a major career as a movie and television actress alongside raising her three children, Witherspoon fully embraces the working mom lifestyle.

“You take the food out of your mouth, the clothes off your back, the sleep out of your life. But every bit of it, every bit of that sacrifice is truly worth it,” Witherspoon said. “That’s what makes me wake up on a Sunday. It’s not movies or my job. It’s my kids.”

Witherspoon is the mother of Ava, 21 and Deacon Phillippe, 16, whom she shares with ex Ryan Phillippe; as well as seven-year-old Tennessee James Toth with husband Jim Toth.