It’s been nearly seven years since Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger announced their separation following his affair confession. Now, the 62-year-old is telling all on that rough period in her life in her new book.
“I grew up thinking divorce was a sin,” Shriver writes in her new read, I’ve Been Thinking. “I couldn’t have been more wrong.”
Shriver also discusses the topic of marriage, and her new views since her heartbreaking split.
“I always thought people whose marriages didn’t work out were quitters. I was wrong,” Shriver established. “I do admire people who work at their marriages, but I also admire those who chart a new way forward. And I really admire those who manage to stay friends after their marriages are over — and aren’t afraid to try love again after being hurt.”
The former journalist admits she felt extremely lonely following her divorce, especially after her youngest child left home for college. (Shriver’s son Patrick Schwarzenegger, 24, who once dated Miley Cyrus, attended the University of Southern California, and youngest son Christopher, 20, is enrolled in the University of Michigan.)
“In order not to be alone, I’d always packed my life and my house full of people, lots of people,” Shriver says. “That was in part because I was afraid not just to be alone, but also to look like I was alone. Being alone for just one minute felt like I had always been alone and was doomed to be alone on this earth forever.”
Shriver reveals in the book that going to therapy has helped her combat the loneliness.
“I thought therapy was for people who were mentally ill, had lost either a parent or a child, or were suicidal. I was wrong. I am a beneficiary of therapy. It’s helped me tremendously to navigate the rough patches in my life, to be more aware, to forgive, and to be a better person. I recommend it sooner rather than later.”
The mom of four was the former first lady of California when her then-husband was governor. Shriver announced her separation from Schwarzenegger after 25 years of marriage.
A week following the separation announcement, Schwarzenegger revealed that he had a love child with a longtime member of their household staff.
