Angelina Jolie overcame a troubled childhood to become a calmer and
happier adult raising six children with partner Brad Pitt. (Photos/Parade)
Angelina Jolie opens up about her troubled childhood and happy home life with Brad Pitt in the July 11 issue of Parade magazine.
Jolie, 35, reveals she experimented with drugs, alcohol and self-mutiliation as a teen as a way to numb her existential emptiness.
'I WAS A RESTLESS SOUL'
"I used to cut myself or jump out of airplanes, trying to find something new to push up against because sometimes everything else felt too easy," says Angelina.
She adds: "I was searching for something deeper, something more. I tried everything. I always felt caged, closed in, like I was punching at things that weren't there. I always had too much energy for the room I was in."
'BRAD AND I NEVER SPEND MORE THAN 3 DAYS APART'
Now the mother of six young children, Jolie says she's a calmer, more centered person who enjoys spending time at home with Pitt, 46, and the kids.
"There's never a period when Brad and I are pulled apart," says Angelina. "We are not separated for more than three days, ever. We stay really connected. We actually don't go out much. It's funny. We're very homebound. We're very much Mommy and Daddy in our pajamas."
Here are some highlights from the Parade interview:
Are the chidren keeping Angie and Brad together?
The children certainly tie us together, but a relationship won't hold if it's only about the kids. You also must be really interested in each other and have a really, really wonderful, exciting time together. We do. Brad and I love being together. We enjoy it. We need it, and we always find that special time. We stay connected. We talk about it. It's very important. If Brad and I are strong and happy, then our kids have happy parents, and that's the best thing we can give them." She adds, "Brad knows me completely, exactly as I am, every part of me. He loves me. The kids love me. They know all my flaws and all my oddities. And they accept them. And so I can feel complete.
Her thoughts on love?
I feel sad for someone who has never known love. Love elevates. You know, Brad would joke about me having this conversation about love. Love? It's such a funny word. Brad can find certain phrases of poetry for it. I'm terrible at it. But I know it means wanting the best for the people you love, putting their interests above your own, always. Love does that. Love is what you live for.
On her early roles in Hollywood 
I went through a period when I felt my film characters were having more fun than I was. It might partly explain why I ended up tattooed or doing certain extreme things in my life." She points out an inscription on her arm, one of her 13 tattoos. "The wild heart caged. I unlocked my cage years ago. I want my children to have that freedom. I want that for other people, too.
The media circus
We do everything we can to keep our kids away from it. We travel to places where the kids aren't aware of that kind of thing. We try to give them a full life where they don't have to come face to face with that world. With the paparazzi present, we're careful when we leave the house. Other than that..." She laughs at the absurdity of it all. "We don't stand in the checkout line at the grocery store looking at the magazines. Our friends don't tell us about it. And our kids don't know. I feel if we keep looking out for them, they'll be fine.
How she balances work with her home life
[Brad] takes the kids to school; he visits me on set with the kids. I'm home for dinner, or I'm there for breakfast. We're together all the time. We plan. Brad and I take time off between films to travel, have big experiences, do things together. That's how we work it out.
On her late mother, Marcheline Bertrand, who died in 2007 of ovarian cancer
Mother never put herself first, ever. At the end, she said her greatest success was being a mother. I remember Mother singing in church. How pretty she was! I lit candles with her. She said she had missed nothing in life except getting to know her grandchildren. When she passed away, I brought my son to church to light a candle for her. I loved her so much.
Angelina's new movie, the spy thriller Salt, opens July 23. [see slideshow below]
- Angelina Jolie: I turned down part of James Bond girl before Salt (new trailer)
- Angelina Jolie jets to Cancun to promote Salt
- Critics claim Angelina Jolie is 'too white' to play Cleopatra
- Angelina Jolie opens up in August Vanity Fair interview (photos)
- Angelina Jolie confirmed as Cleopatra, but is she the right fit physically?
- Angelina Jolie is an abusive psycho, claims ex-employee
- Angelina Jolie: I used to be unstable
- Angelina: 'I love martial arts'
- Angelina Jolie's diet & exercise secrets
![Jolie, who revealed she was once a suicidal drug addict, finally has the happy family life she's always wanted. "[Brad and I aren't] against getting married, but its just like we already are," she says. "Children are clearly a commitment, a bigger commitment [than marriage]. Its for life. (Photo/Parade)](http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/hash/a8/21/a821d52bab3134007d94daad5d84abad.jpg "Jolie, who revealed she was once a suicidal drug addict, finally has the happy family life she's always wanted. \"[Brad and I aren't] against getting married, but its just like we already are,\" she says. \"Children are clearly a commitment, a bigger")
Comments
Too bad she can't give Lohan some advice, seems like she may have some things that could "hit home" as an intervention.
I don't know how they keep it together with everything they do. I read this Parade, and am amazed at how simple they say the life they have is. With Brad being an artist and being homebodies, I thought it was really cute.
I wonder if they will make it in the long haul?
PLEASE! She is dysfunctinal to her core. Brad Pitt had a class act in Jennifer Aniston. I can only imagine the horror his mother must endure having Angelina Jolie as the mother of your grandchildren. Once an unstable individual, always an unstable individual!
That's such a ridiculous statement. So you're basically saying that no one in this world is able to grow up and become a mature, responsible person? People are not allowed to make mistakes in their youth and learn from them anymore? And the comment about Jennifer Aniston only makes you look even more childish. Do you personally know her to claim she's a class act? Maybe you should try growing up and stop judging people you don't even know.
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