Alexandria Wyckoff
Drew Barrymore opened up about her body insecurities during a fashion segment on her talk show, conveying that anyone can struggle with body image and change after having children.
Body Insecurities
During the April 6th episode of The Drew Barrymore Show in the “Scared to Wear” segment, a viewer had a makeover after struggling with self-image after losing 75 pounds.
When Drew Barrymore heard Dawn Benwood’s journey of being overweight to suddenly trying on tight-fitted clothes, she totally understood where she was coming from.
A pretaped segment from Benwood featured her saying, “I can’t get away from the big baggy clothes because it’s weird wearing tighter clothes. Even now I still look in the mirror, and I know I’m a different size, but I don’t see that. I would love to feel confident and be able to go out and not be worried about [wondering] ‘Do I look stupid?'”
Barrymore’s response? “I so related. I really did.”
She then shared her own experiences about body image after giving birth to her two children, Olive (13) and Frankie (11).
“The other day I was walking down the street, and I’ve had two C-Sections, and I’m so wrecked down there,” she said, tearing up.
“I can’t wear a lot of different types of pants. But the other day I was walking around, and I had this shorter shirt on, and I couldn’t keep my jacket closed. And I was walking around like, ‘I don’t want anyone to see this.'”
She added, “And I so get when you have kids, and you have a busy life, and your body changes and you get older, and things just aren’t the same. I totally get it.”
Out of Comfort Zone
Along with Benwood, Drew Barrymore took the opportunity to talk to Benwood’s daughter. She explained how “delightfully unusual” it was to see her mother in a tight-fitting dress rather than black, baggy clothes.
Barrymore then shared her experiences with her own daughters, pushing her out of her fashion comfort zone. “Just hearing your story, I just thought of how I felt two days ago walking down the street on a Sunday with my daughter. I totally get it. And I’ve gotta tell you, I’m looking at you and all I see is just your beautiful hard work — that I only know because you told us, I wouldn’t know otherwise — and you look so stunning.”
She added, “Listen, you know what my daughter does? She encourages me to dress differently. And a lot of the times I feel really good…We all can find something that fits us right.”
Menopause
Drew Barrymore has always prized keeping things real on her chat show. One month ago, she shared her experiences with menopause symptoms, joking that she felt like a “dead fish.”
“I can’t ever start today without being honest because I can’t fake anything,” she said to begin the show. “I am so bloated that I feel like some carp that got brought up to the beach and I’m just that dead fish.”
Co-host Ross Matthews asked if anything Barrymore did contributed to her being “puffed” up, and Barrymore said she just got her period for the first time in nearly a year, while also navigating periomenopause.
“I was about to hit my one-year mark for my period and get right into menopause where I belong…I got it.” Barrymore explained. “I got it. I’m at 11 months. So I go back down to zero. And ugh, I feel unattractive and I’m so hormonal and nothing makes sense and I’m irritable and I’m bloated and I am emotionally unstable. How are you?”
After her explanation, Drew Barrymore felt “a lot better,” telling Matthews that “at least you know where I’m at.”
Embracing Aging
In February 2026, Drew Barrymore shared her experiences with aging on her 51st birthday.
“It’s the 51st year of my life. I’m so excited. Life just gets better,” she said. “Yes, physically, we decline a little bit along the way and that is challenging. I just don’t think it matches in any way to some of the calm, some of the lived experiences.”
She added, “Attacking the negative voices in our head and saying, ‘I cannot live like this any longer. I won’t be here forever. How can I take away from the experience here on this planet, this pale blue dot, by being so cruel to myself? This is no way to live. And I had no access to that type of brain function when I was younger. I just thought that’s what it took.”