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Jennifer Aniston’s 15-year feud with mum Nancy Dow ‘who wasn’t trying to be a b***h’
Jennifer Aniston has opened up about her tumultuous relationship with her mother, Nancy Dow.
The 51-year-old Hollywood actress revealed that she did not invite her mom to her wedding with Brad Pitt due to their troubled relationship.
Jen had previously spoken about how her childhood was marred by her mother’s expectations that she couldn’t meet, especially when it came to looks and glamour.
Talking to Elle magazine in January 2019, Jennifer admitted that she didn’t think that her mother was “trying to be a b***h” but it still caused “deep wounds.”
She said that after the breakdown of her parents’ marriage, she spent her childhood being “emotionally drained” by her mum’s feelings.
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Jennifer found herself at odds with Nancy, and she said about their relationship: “She was from this world of, ‘Honey, take better care of yourself,’ or ‘Honey, put your face on,’ or all of those odd sound bites that I can remember from my childhood.”
Their relationship eventually drifted apart, and looking back at that time in her life, Jen said: “My mom said those things because she really loved me.
It wasn’t her trying to be a b***h or knowing she would be making some deep wounds that I would then spend a lot of money to undo.
She did it because that was what she grew up with.”
Despite their differences, Jen understood that her mother was dealing with financial struggles and the challenges of being a single mom in the ’80s.
Reflecting on what her mom must have been up against, Jennifer said: “She was missing what was [actually] important.
I think she was just holding on and doing the best she could.”
It was her friendship group that kept Jennifer sane, and she said that they helped each other.
Jen added: “We always joke that we raised each other, we mothered each other, we sistered each other, we’ve been kids to each other.”
The publication of From Mother and Daughter to Friends: A Memoir in 1999 caused a rift between Jennifer and her mother.
Jen was upset with the revelations in the book and cut her mom out of her life for at least 15 years.
They only reconciled just before Nancy’s death in 2016.
Despite everything, Jennifer has been able to take the positive from her experiences and use them as an example of what not to be.
She said that she wanted to “use what I grew up with as an example of what I do not want to be or live in.”
It is clear that Jennifer’s relationship with her mother was complicated, but she has been able to move on and grow.
