Beloved actress Jane Fonda opened up about her unhappy youth as she admitted she believed she’d die before the age of 30.
She was discussing aging
In a Wednesday, November 19 appearance on Michelle Obama’s podcast, The Look, Fonda shared the heartbreaking admission.
She joined model and activist Bethann Hardison, and Real Housewives of New York star Jenna Lyons as they discussed aging.
Fonda said she was ‘sure’ she’d die
“I didn’t think I’d live past 30,” Fonda admitted. “I was sure I was going to die.”
The Hollywood star is now about to turn 88 years old, with her birthday on December 21. She admitted that ‘drugs and loneliness’ made her think she’d die early.
She referenced her mother’s death
“My mother died when I was 12,” Fonda said, referring to her mother, Frances Ford Seymour, who died by suicide in 1950.
“My youth was not especially happy, and … I’m not addictive, but I thought I was going to die from drugs and loneliness,” she said.
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But she feels better in her life now
“The fact that I’m almost 88 is astonishing to me,” Fonda went on. “And what is even more astonishing is that I’m better now.”
“I wouldn’t go back for anything. I feel more centered, more whole, more complete. I’m very happy. Single.”
She’s not afraid of aging
Responding to Fonda’s heartfelt admission, Michelle Obama said, “I’m a fan of you.”
Elsewhere in the discussion, Fonda shared, “I’ve never been afraid of aging, and more importantly, I’m not afraid of dying.”
She’s more worried she’d die with regrets
The Oscar winner shared that when she turned 60, she felt that ‘this is the beginning of my final act, and I didn’t know how to live it.’
It was then that she realized ‘I’m afraid of dying with a lot of regrets.’
Fonda spoke about her dad’s death
“I watched my dad die with a lot of regrets,” Fonda said of her late father, Henry Fonda, who died aged 77 in 1982.
“That was an important realization for me, because if you don’t want to die with regrets, then you have to live the last part of your life in such a way that there won’t be any regrets.”
