Valerie Bertinelli has opened up about the breast augmentation she underwent in her late 20s and the complications she faced decades later after having her implants removed.
The 65-year-old actress and former Food Network star discussed the experience while promoting her upcoming memoir Getting Naked: The Quiet Work of Becoming Perfectly Imperfect, which will be released on March 10.
In the book, Bertinelli recalls getting breast implants in the late 1980s but eventually deciding to remove them in 2024. Speaking to People, she said the procedure initially made her happy, but her feelings changed over time.
“I liked it for a little while and then started to hate it,” she said. “At a certain point, I had gained and lost so much weight that my boobs were just… I felt like they were down to my belly button. I was like, ‘I just want my small boobs back.’”
After undergoing implant removal surgery, Bertinelli developed a serious infection that required additional medical treatment.
She said she realized the situation was more severe than expected when she returned to see her doctor.
“The look on my doctor’s face when he finally saw me made me think, ‘Oh s**t, I guess I should have come in earlier,’” she recalled. According to Bertinelli, the surgeon had to remove the implant and surrounding tissue to treat the infection.
The complication significantly affected the appearance of her breast. “My breast became infected and started to cave in on itself. It became a crater,” she said, adding that she will need another surgery to even them out.
Despite the difficult experience, Bertinelli said she tries to maintain a sense of humor about the situation.
“Me and my cats are the only ones looking at my boobs anyway,” she joked. “I’ll have to date somebody who can’t see.”
Bertinelli briefly dated writer Mike Goodnough in early 2024, but the couple split by November.
In December 2024, she shared a candid mirror selfie on Instagram wearing black underwear, reflecting on the physical changes her body experienced throughout the year.
“At some point I will talk about the madness my body has been through this year,” she wrote in the caption. “But right now every lump, bump, wrinkle and saggy part of me just feels acceptance and simple appreciation.”
Her memoir, Getting Naked, explores themes including aging, love, friendship and self-acceptance through a collection of personal essays.
When announcing the book in October, Bertinelli described it as a deeply personal project.
“This is my heart broken wide open,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “It’s a collection of intimate and vulnerable essays exploring aging, love, friendship, secrets and acceptance.”
She added that writing the book became unexpectedly healing.
“I didn’t even realize how much I needed to write this book until I started,” she said. “My hope is that it will inspire people to resist negative thoughts, put themselves first and let go of the judgment they feel about themselves.”