Valerie Bertinelli gets candid about body image struggles in emotional video

Valerie Bertinelli is struggling.

The "Hot in Cleveland" and "Valerie's Home Cooking" star posted a video on Instagram Thursday in which she delved into a familiar topic — body image and weight issues — and candidly revealed to fans that she's having a hard time with both.

But her words will ring true to everyone who watches the video, whose caption simply says, "(Exhales)":

"I'm standing out in the rain because I'm doing my best to distract my mind from spiraling to a place of self-loathing, because I saw a picture of myself today that made me want to do that," she says in the video.

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"I am not where I want to be right now, body-wise. I don't know if I ever will be, but when I see it right in front of me, it really does send me down that path. And I am doing my best to be positive and more full of joy and hopefully my body will follow along. I'm not there yet," she continues.

All words that many of us will empathize with, particularly at the end of the year when parties and cooking special meals are first and foremost, and New Year's "resolutions" are still at least a week away. But Bertinelli is taking a longer view than just at year-end indulgences; the 61-year-old Food Network star acknowledges that this is a lifelong battle for some, including herself.

In July, she clapped back at a commenter who had told her to lose weight. "You think I’m not tired of it, lady?" she asked at the time. "Not f—ing helpful."

And in the post caption she wondered, "Aren’t we tired of body shaming women yet?!"

The hard part is that the body shaming often comes from within. In her new video, Bertinelli goes on to try and buck herself up, promising not to "focus on all the shortcomings and flaws and imperfections."

Bertinelli has been coping with other issues lately as well; her ex-husband Eddie Van Halen died in 2020, and in November she separated from her husband of 10 years, Tom Vitale.

In the video she added, "We can all give ourselves permission to feel joy, be intentional about it, and remember to be grateful. I am grateful, even through all the mess. 'Cause there’s still good in all the mess."