Drew Barrymore: I needed the discipline of an institution

But in a new book, Wildflower, excerpted exclusively in People, she delves more intimately than she has before into the dysfunction that formed her and the ability to see the glass as half full that helped her get through. “I had none. I had the weirdest life ever”.

Drew Barrymore believes the “horrible and dark” times she spent in a mental health institution as a teenager were essential for her survival. Barrymore recounts “wailing” and “gasping for air” before it hits her: Frankie looked like her mother, Jaid Barrymore, whom she describes as her “biggest emotional button”.

“They (Barrymore’s parents) were pretty out there!”

What do you think of Drew’s interview?

When asked if she was sent to an institution for the mentally ill, the actress replied, “Yeah, absolutely”.

Barrymore went on to a rough couple of years – Hollywood no longer wanted to hire her. She took jobs in restaurants cleaning bathrooms and such, until she came back into the film industry with movies like Scream and The Wedding Singer.

She says it wasn’t until Frankie was around 6 months old that she felt like herself again, but she’s grateful for the experience because it reminded her of the importance of living in the moment and focusing on what really matters. She added that she had no idea it was coming. However, the “Charlie’s Angels” star has no regrets and doesn’t blame her parents for putting her there. “I really dedicate it to my kids”. “I knew I’d be very traditional, or I would not do it. I would never have had children unless I was incredibly stable and willing to put them first”. “There was something very abnormal, and I needed a few severe shift”, Barrymore told The Guardian. “I live every second of every day to make her laugh and smile”.

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