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But while she promises fans will see “the old Jill back they remember from season 1,” the entrepreneur and mother of one tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue that there’s one major difference to her approach to life in front of the cameras these days.
“I’m medicated now,” Zarin, 58, says. “I suffer from anxiety and partial depression. I didn’t realize it before, but I wound up going to doctor and was prescribed medicine for it.”
“It would cause this circular thinking that I couldn’t break out of it,” recalls Zarin. “When I was onRHONY, I would constantly talk about the show. If something was bothering me — say I was getting hate from the fans and I was upset about it — I would talk toLuann [de Lesseps], I would talk toRamona [Singer], I would talk to my mother, my friend, my agent, my late husband, my daughter; it was 24 hours a day. Others could let these things roll off their backs, but I had this ailment that prevented me from doing that. I was hypersensitive to everything going on around me and quite paranoid that there were things going on I didn’t see. It wasn’t healthy for me.”
“Now, I take an antidepressant and it’s really changed my life,” she adds. “Things don’t bother me as much as they did. I’m a lot calmer. It’s just one of the changes I’ve made in my life I think fans will be surprised to see.”
Bethenny Frankel and the season 1 cast ofThe Real Housewives of New York City.Jay Sullivan/NBC/Getty
Zarin was one of the founding members ofRHONYwhen the show premiered in March 2008, starring alongside de Lesseps, Singer,Bethenny Frankeland Alex McCord. After four seasons, Zarin was let go from the series during a major cast shakeup.
“I’m proud of everything I’ve done,” Jill says. “I’ve really made a name for myself in affordable luxury home goods. And it’s because I knew my brand; I knew people thought of Zarin Fabrics when they thought of me, so I went down that path. It’s like my tagline used to say: ‘I am who I am and I own it.’ I’m living my tagline.”
Sophy Holland/Peacock
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And part of owning it includes Jill’s awareness that not everyone is going to be “Team Jill.”
“Look, if you don’t like me, you’re never going to like me,” she says. “But I think you’ll see onUltimate Girls Tripthat I’ve really matured. I’m still that empathetic, opinionated friend I’ve always been — because that’s really who I am, and you become more of yourself as you get older — but I also feel lighter. I’m a better Jill.”
The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip Ex-Wives Clubpremieres on Peacock June 23.
For more on Jill Zarin, pick up this week’s issue ofPEOPLE— on newsstands now.
source: people.com
