Jennette McCurdyis opening up about the long-lasting trauma of childhood fame.
The 30-year-oldiCarlyalum and author of the upcoming memoirI’m Glad My Mom Diedis revealing how her mother,Debra McCurdy, did not properly protect her from the entertainment industry when she was growing up.
“My whole childhood and adolescence were very exploited,” she toldThe New York Times. “It still gives my nervous system a reaction to say it. There were cases where people had the best intentions and maybe didn’t know what they were doing. And also cases where they did — they knew exactly what they were doing.”
Brian Kimsley
For more on Jennette McCurdy, listen below to our daily podcast PEOPLE Every Day.
Jennette’s brother Marcus McCurdy confirmedthat her mother made their childhood difficult.
“You were always walking on eggshells — is it going to be nice mom or crazy mom today?” he said in theTimes' story. “One day she’d be fine, the next day she’d be yelling at everybody. Every holiday was super overdramatic. She’d lose her mind on Christmas if something wasn’t perfect.”
McCurdy’siCarlycostarMiranda Cosgrovesays she was unaware of her cast mate’s struggle while they were filming.
“When you’re young, you’re so in your own head,” said Cosgrove, 29. “You can’t imagine that people around you are having much harder struggles. You don’t expect things like that from the person in the room who’s making everyone laugh.”
McCurdy is now looking forward to the future and finding her own path.
Jennette McCurdy and her mother Debbie.Frederick M Brown/Getty
McCurdy has long been vocal abouther decision to quit acting, which didn’t actually come until after her mom’s death in 2013. In a March 2021 conversation on McCurdy’sEmpty Insidepodcast, she expanded on the general unhappiness she held while acting.
“I was a famous 19-year-old, and making a bunch of money, and I felt like I had everything at my fingertips,” McCurdy shared. “But I wasdeeply unhappy, and I actually really resented my life because I didn’t like the projects that I was a part of.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.
I’m Glad My Mom Diedwill be available everywhere books are sold on Tuesday.
source: people.com
