Valerie Bertinelli didn't know how she would "get through" her divorce.
The 64-year-old actress split from Tom Vitale, 61, in 2022 after more than a decade of marriage and took to social media on Saturday (23.11.24) to mark her "two years of freedom" since she was declared legally single.
She shared a quote on Instagram that read: "I didn't know how I was going to get through it, but knew, somehow she would."
Alongside the image, she wrote: "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.
"Two years of working through shame and self-loathing. (Still working on that part, long tail that)
"Two years of working to find my true self."
Valerie - who cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason behind her divorce - had a brief relationship with Mike Goodnough following the end of her marriage and thanked him for allowing her to "dip [her] toe" back into the world of dating as she looked back on the "traumas" and "demons" she has had to work through.
She added: "Two years of eventually dipping my toe in and feeling love again. (Thank you, Mike )
"Two years of confronting past demons and traumas and doing my best to work through them.
"I want to be the best, most authentic version of myself heading into this last chapter of my life. I am learning that until I love myself and accept myself, all of me, my dark and light sides, I can never give someone else the love and emotional vulnerability that they need and deserve. You must give it to yourself first so that you can share it. Whoo boy. I’m workin on it
"I’m so grateful to my friends and family for being with me through all of it. And @therealhoarse, thank you for being such a big part of my growth this year. I’m grateful for our experience and I’m so grateful I met you.
"And to all of you in my online community, I’m so grateful for you. I’m grateful for your feedback. I’m grateful for your compassion. Thank you."
The former 'One Day at a Time' star - who was initially married to late rock star Eddie van Halen from 1981 until 2007 and has Wolfgang,33, with him - concluded her post by reminding others going through a similar situation that things will "get better" eventually.
"Most importantly, I want you to know that if you’re struggling right now, I’ve been there and some days I can still be there but I want you to know it does get better. I promise you. It gets better. Some days will still be hard and challenging, but on other days, the light will shine brighter and you will feel it."
