Emma Watson just opened up about her struggles with low self-esteem

It’s hard to believe, but Emma Watson is all grown up now. She’s in her mid-twenties, enjoying a freakishly busy international acting career. But it hasn’t been an easy road to get there. Like all of us, Emma has struggled from time to time with personal insecurities and anxieties about her body image.

She recently spoke with Esquire UK and opened up about her breakdown in confidence a few years ago. “I, as a 21 year old, was riddled with insecurity and self-critiquing,” she said. “Some of my friends still are. I realized that I don’t like friends taking photo’s of me when I wasn’t working and I actually got in a fight about this issue. And I wondered, why is this bothering me? Why does this make me so insecure? And I realized it’s because I can’t even reconcile myself with my own image on the front of these magazines.”

Emma says she frequently compared her unrealistic image in magazines and movies to her normal life, and found it hard to reconcile living up to that. There was too much overwhelming pressure. So Emma went through an “empowering switch,” where she stopped trying to change things about herself and her appearance. Instead, Emma accepted her situation and the demands that are put on her.

These days, Emma is a huge advocate for women to be the best version of themselves. As well as being the UN Women Global Goodwill ambassador, she launched the HeForShe campaign in 2014 which fights for gender equality. Emma discusses some of her involvement in the Esquire interview. Have a read to get inspired!