Reese Witherspoon on the Humiliation of Divorce

Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe were, for seven beautiful years, one of the most envied couples in Hollywood. With their perfect two children and their also perfect marriage, they soon became a sort of living proof that marriages could last even in Tinseltown. When Reese filed for divorce in 2006, the world was in shock. Now, almost three years later, the actress still feels the pain of separation, as she reveals for the latest issue of Elle magazine.

The “Walk the Line” star is usually very secretive about her personal life but, every now and then, even she must feel the need to be open about what troubles her the most. On this note, the petite actress says that divorce was one of the most “humiliating and isolating” experiences she ever had to go through. There were times, she shares, when she honestly felt that things would never be alright again.

“Very humiliating and very isolating… But, by the way, if it’s not painful, maybe it wasn’t the right decision to marry to begin with. Those are the appropriate emotions. When people get in your face and say, ‘This will pass,’ you think, Are they crazy? I’m never gonna feel any better than I feel right this minute and nothing’s ever gonna make sense again. And I still have moments where I’m like, Nothings ever gonna make sense again.” Reese tells Elle about her divorce.

In the same interview, the star also admits to playing the “blame game” for a long while after she and Ryan decided to separate. In the end, she believes, she learned a lot because of the divorce experience, but it’s something she hopes she will never have to live again. Of course, she has boyfriend Jake Gyllenhaal to lean on now, but she is apparently not ready to speak about their relationship yet.

“He’s fabulous. He really is a fantastic guy. Unfortunately, he’s not in the movie, so we can’t really talk about him.” Reese reveals about her “Rendition” co-star and the man with whom she’s been sharing her life for almost two years. For more on Reese, including on being a control freak and her relationship with the paparazzi, pick up the latest issue of Elle magazine, now on newsstands.