Frazer Harrison/Getty ImagesBy RACHEL GEORGE, ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Gabrielle Union wore her natural hair for the first time on a magazine cover for the recent October issue of Women’s Health Magazine.
On Thursday, the 47-year-old actress, mom and wife shared a few behind-the-scenes pictures from the cover shoot, which she says revealed her true self.
“It was the 1st time feeling truly like myself in front of the camera,” Union wrote on Instagram. “The me that my loved ones see every day. The me that fights daily for my peace and the peace of others. The imperfect warrior that’s lost more battles than I’ve won, but still keeps on fighting.”
“At this grown age, I feel like I’m finally ME,” she added. “And I can breathe. And as long as I have breath, [I] can keep fighting.”
Maintaining her peace is extremely important to Union, especially since moving out of Los Angeles a few months ago.
“I think I was brought to this home for a reason. Finding that peaceful balance with nature, and understanding that we moved into their space,” she shared with Women’s Health. “This is so not my normal language, but I don’t have other words to describe it.”
In the interview, Union admitted she was having a hard time dealing with her mental health amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests.
“The combination of a pandemic and this racial reckoning, alongside being inundated with [images of] the brutalization of Black bodies, has sent my PTSD into overdrive,” she said. “There’s just terror in my body.”
But Union credits therapy for helping to keep her grounded during these trying times, as she’s still able to tap into her freedom. “I feel different in my body. I feel freer,” she said.
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