Emma Watson Opens Up About About Her Struggle With Low Self Esteem

Emma Watson is our biggest girl crush. Sorry JLaw, you're a close second, but Watson just owns our hearts. Not only did she play Hermione, embodying one of our favourite childhood characters, but she is also incredibly intelligent and her eloquent speeches on feminism and the issues she is so passionate about have won us over forever.

But it seems that even Emma Watson has insecurities. She comes across as such a strong, independent young woman when appearing in public that it's easy to forget that she is also just a normal girl who struggles with the same issues as so many of us. Emma spoke to Esquire recently about her self esteem issues, saying she felt completely overwhelmed by them at a younger age.

"I, as a 21-year-old, was riddled with insecurity and self-critiquing. Some of my friends still are. I realized that I didn't like friends taking photos of me when I wasn't working and I actually got in a fight about this issue. And I wondered, why is this bothering me? Why does this make me so insecure? And I realized it's because I can't even reconcile myself with my own image on the front of these magazines."

I mean, can we even imagine having to deal with our insecurities and on top of that being plastered all over magazines and newspapers?! Not a chance in hell.

"Comparing myself to how I look, when I've gone through all of that makeup and styling, in my normal life is… just… I can't live up to it. I was like, 'Holy shit! If that's how I feel — and I get to be the person who's on the cover of those magazines — how's anyone else meant to cope?'"

Watson really identified a serious issue that so many people, not just women, deal with when growing up. Low self esteem is such a problem these days. It's so hard for people to see themselves in a positive light when they are constantly bombarded with images of what they should look like according to the media. It's toxic to anyone, but especially to young women who are just trying to establish who they are in the first place. Watson says she realised that after some time.

"It's unbelievable. Switching from that to being like: 'Oh, I actually operate in a system that's fucked. I'm not fucked, the system's fucked. OK.' And, ironically, it's probably made me more beautiful and more confident as a result because I'm not carrying that anxiety any more."

We couldn't agree more! Embracing who you are and what you look like is the most important thing of all. Everyone is unique and if we can learn to love that about ourselves, then that's what truly matters.

Video: Emma Watson to United Nations: I'm a feminist

Credit: CNN.