Valerie Bertinelli Recalls Not Wearing Particular Pants After Being 'Mercilessly Mocked' As Lazy

Valerie Bertinelli continues to speak about her healing journey!

The renowned cook seemed to endure a lot amid her marriage to financial planner Tom Vitale whom she legally separated from in 2021 before their ultimate divorce the following year.

Ever since, Bertinelli has never shied away from being open about her emotional state. She recently did so, recalling a period when she was emotionally abused for her weight and supposedly being lazy.  

The "Valerie's Home Cooking" host once had a "small hidden bruise," triggered recently, which she told her fans about in a candid video on Instagram. She appeared in a good mood in the clip, giggling in the beginning while taking a walk before revealing the reason behind her glee. 

Fans could hear Bertinelli's pants rubbing as she walked, which she noted made a particular sound. She then revealed that she stopped wearing them because she was told and "mercilessly mocked" for being "too lazy to do anything about it." Although the mockery currently does not matter to her as she left it in her past, the "hidden bruises" were something she had to deal with whenever they got activated.

Nevertheless, she was "so grateful" that her healing journey was progressing, thereby making her "giggle." Given the past ridicule, the "Hot in Cleveland" actress put the trousers away and even changed how she walked in them. But now, she can rock them even with them rubbing, which she described as the "sound of freedom" to her. 

At the end of the clip, Bertinelli confessed to initially being skeptical about posting because people advised her to "let go of it" and "move on." Thankfully, she went ahead with the post, calling the act "moving on" and "healing." She then sent a welcome note to those who could relate to her experience and felt seen.

The update, jokingly captioned "duck waddle activated," gained numerous reactions and remarks praising her for speaking her truth and staying strong amid her healing journey. A commenter penned, "The amount of hurtful language and behavior you endured is sending me. Keep talking. Keep walking." 

Another fan commended Bertinelli for "surviving and thriving" after noting that people did not understand that "healing isn't linear." A third fan expressed, "Hidden bruises… so very relatable. Thank you for being vulnerable and sharing; your tribe is strong."

A fourth commenter similarly appreciated the 62-year-old for narrating her "sharing the concept of hidden bruises" while urging her to "keep wearing the pants" and "keep giggling."

This comes in the wake of Bertinelli wrapping up her "Dry January" program, which she embarked on for health purposes and emotional clarity. As reported, she stuck to the resolution throughout the month and updated fans via her Stories after completing the journey. 

She announced in a video on the last day, "Day 30, I did it!" adding, "I'm happy because I physically feel better. I'm getting better sleep." The "Touched by an Angel" star then revealed that some not-so-good feelings surfaced, and she chose to feel them through rather than typically drowning them down with alcohol.

She further explained, "Feelings are emotions, and instead of ignoring them and suppressing them, I need to figure out what these feelings are telling me." According to Bertnelli, the emotions told her she was unworthy, and she realized they were not true but someone else's projection on her. Nevertheless, that did not stop the feelings from coming up and hurting.

Being single no doubt looks good on Bertinelli, as detailed in a recent post. Last week, she told her numerous fans what she had been up to via an Insta Story video, The mother-of-one spoke of a "painful exercise" that proved really helpful to her.

The Golden Globe Awards winner said, "I believe there is a lot of emotional pain that's stored in the body, and I'm doing my best to heal from it in every way." She then admitted that she loved including her fans in her journey because many could relate to her distress. However, haters kept coming for her as they did not comprehend what she went through.

In Bertinelli's words, "There's a few of you that don't understand and think, 'omg, get over it!' I'm over it. I'm over the narcissist; I'm long over the narcissist."

She maintained so, adding that she was "more joyful" and "more happy" living a "beautiful" life she was grateful for, truly enjoyed, and deserved.