WENN
“Orange is the New Black” actress Dascha Polanco recently invited the world into a more personal part of her life during a candid chat with Latina magazine. During the interview, the 32-year-old mom of two opened up about becoming a teen mother at age 18, her battle with depression and embracing her curves. Check out some highlights from her interview below.
On being 18 and giving birth to a premature baby who only weighed 2 pounds:
“She’s a blessing, a miracle baby but for a first experience, it was difficult.”
On not recommending having children young:
“Nothing’s wrong with it; it just makes it a little bit more challenging. The only person that was by my side was my mother.”
On her mother suddenly dying at age 46:
“[After her death] I remember having to find some- body to stay with my daughter because I didn’t want to stop school, and I couldn’t stop working. It was raining, and I was like, ‘Who can I trust that is not my mom?’ I realized you have to put your armor on; you have to become a warrior because family is not there.”
On her bout with depression:
“I went through a large depression and started feeling emotionally isolated. But because my parents taught me that God is going to send you obstacles and you have to overcome them, it put me at ease.”
On seeking therapy after her mom’s passing:
“Mental health is a big issue, and I think it’s ignored a lot in the Latino community. It’s very interesting, the times I’ve felt that I can’t breathe emotionally, and I react to things in a very impulsive manner— whether it’s anger or crying. And being able to speak to somebody about that was kind of a revelation that it was okay for me to feel depressed.”
On embracing her body the way it is:
“I’m still very insecure bodywise, and I’m working on it, but I’m also confident because I feel like I’m not going to let anybody knock me down. Why should I now not be able to carry myself, love myself? Okay, everybody has an opinion about everything—but my body has been a negative factor in my life all the time. But now I embrace its uniqueness.”
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