Bella Hadid is looking back on a painful part of her past.
During the latest episode of the VS Voices podcast, the 25-year-old runway model opened up about her personal experiences with those she said abused her in the past. Before recalling the specific instances, Hadid explained how her adolescence affected her relationships in adulthood.
"I always felt like my voice was never heard growing up," Hadid said. "I grew up around men—whether that was in relationships or family or whatever that was—where I was constantly told that my voice was less important than their voice."
"Then moving into relationships growing up, not having the boundaries of being able to stick up for myself and have my voice being heard, affected me in my adult relationships very intensely actually, where my nervous system would crash," she continued. "It was like fight or flight; either I would become silent and cry and just go inward, or I would lash out and leave."
For Hadid, it became a recurring cycle. "I constantly went back to men—and also women—that had abused me and that's where the people pleasing came in," she said. "I started not having boundaries, not only sexually, physically, emotionally, but then it went into my workspace."
She added, "I didn't want to associate with any people—I didn't want to have any friends, I didn't want to have any family. I became a people pleaser with my job. And it was everyone else's opinion of me that mattered except for my own because I essentially was putting my worth into the hands of everyone else."
The award-winning model, who has been dating art director Marc Kalman since July 2021, noted that her journey to healing includes different methods such as therapy and meditation. She also explained that takes breaks from social media when needed.
"It sounds very cliche," Hadid, who has also recently opened up about her mental health, shared. "But to not have the energy of everyone else and their projections being projected back onto you is one of the most powerful things of all time."