Two years after ending her marriage with Ben Affleck, Jennifer Lopez has shared the “turning point”, which led to the beginning of a healing journey that transformed her life. Lopez and Affleck, who tied the knot in July 2022 after rekindling their romance in 2021, separated in 2024. Their divorce was finalised in January 2025.
The singer-actress, 56, revealed during an appearance on the SmartLess podcast that the split prompted her to focus on understanding herself. Reflecting on the difficult period, Lopez said she made the decision to cancel her tour and dedicate time to build self-love.
“It was a turning point,” she explained, recalling how she stopped looking outward for answers and instead examined her own role in the challenges she faced.
At the time, Lopez asked herself, “What is going on with you? Forget about everybody else. There’s nobody to blame here, except yourself, in a certain way. … What are you doing? What do you have going on?”
Looking Inward After Divorce
The Grammy-nominated performer said the experience encouraged her to examine “patterns” in her past relationships and confront deeper emotional issues.
The actress admitted there were moments when she felt, “Whether people outside knew it or not, I felt like my life blew up in my own face.”
Learning to Love Herself
One of the biggest lessons Lopez says she learned was the importance of self-love. The star shared that she revisited memories of her younger self and recognized the need to stop seeking validation and love from external sources. Instead, she focused on giving herself the compassion and care she had long searched for elsewhere.
“I was able to go back to that little girl [I once was] and really look at her. And just kind of going like, ‘You did this. You did all of this. Give yourself a little f–king something. A little love! Stop looking for love in other things and give it to yourself’,” the performer noted.
Lopez also credited her sister, Lynda Lopez, for offering valuable advice. The singer revealed how she encouraged her to become her own “keeper” and take responsibility for her emotional well-being.
She said, “These are all little pieces. I feel like the journey is little puzzle pieces that you fit in little by little as you sit there … and go, ‘It’s me.’”
‘I’m Genuinely Happy’
Looking back on the past several years, Lopez described them as a period of intense turmoil followed by healing and self-discovery.
“The past 20 years have been this one thing, the past five years have been a tumult and the last two have been kind of the healing process from that tumult, where I really got to know myself. The person I am today is so different from the person I was even two years ago. It’s crazy,” she said, adding that she now feels genuinely happy.
The singer noted that the past two years have allowed her to better understand herself and piece together lessons from different stages of her life.
What Is Jennifer Lopez Looking Forward To?
Beyond navigating life after divorce, Lopez is also adjusting to becoming an empty nester as her twins prepare to head to college.
During Monday’s episode, she said she plans to stay focused on ‘meaningful’ and ‘intentional’ projects while embracing this new phase of life.
Lopez has recently been linked to her Office Romance co-star Brett Goldstein, though she has shut down suggestions that they are romantically involved.
