Oprah Breaks Down in Tears Over Lingering Childhood Trauma Despite Billion-Dollar Success

Oprah Winfrey is opening up about the painful childhood trauma that continues to haunt her, even as she has achieved massive success with billions of dollars.

Tears of Emotion as Oprah Opens Up About Her Strained Relationship with Her Late Mother

The 71-year-old media mogul — who recently celebrated her birthday — was overcome with emotion as she discussed her complicated relationship with her late mother, Vernita Lee, who passed away in 2018.

Oprah was joined by Dr. Bruce Perry, an American psychiatrist and senior fellow at the Child Trauma Academy in Houston, Texas, as they began a conversation about Oprah’s personal pain after a woman named Annie called into the podcast to talk about her difficult relationship with her own family.

Struggling to Find Positive Memories of Her Mother

Oprah recalled a time when she was asked to speak about her mother at a church service but struggled to find anything positive to say. “I was asked to go to church to offer all these praises for my mother, but I couldn’t think of anything,” Oprah tearfully explained.

The most positive memory she could come up with was: “She didn’t abort me. She did the best she knew how.” Oprah emphasized, “What she knew wasn’t enough to meet my needs, wasn’t enough to make me feel whole.”

She continued, “… It wasn’t enough to make me feel seen, recognized, or important to her. It wasn’t. But that’s the best she could do, and I gave up hope that it could be anything other than what she had.”

Support from Fans and Friends

Oprah’s vulnerability and openness have sparked an outpouring of support from her fans and friends, who were moved by her honesty.

One fan wrote in the comments, “Decades have passed. Billions of dollars have been made. And this still brings her to tears. Parents need to understand and appreciate that what they do and say will stay with their children FOREVER.”

This statement garnered over 4,000 likes from followers who agreed.

Holly Robinson Peete, an actress, was among those who reacted with heartfelt appreciation for Oprah’s candidness. She commented, “Oh… this is why we love Oprah. Because she shares and expresses everything so well and with purpose, in a way that so many people could never express properly.”

Oprah’s Heartfelt Goodbye to Her Mother

At the end of 2018, Oprah opened up about her emotional final moments with her mother, Vernita Lee, at her home in Milwaukee on Thanksgiving Day.

During this time, Oprah shared that she initially struggled to find the right words when saying goodbye. “In hospice care, they have a little booklet on small talks,” Oprah said. “I thought, ‘Isn’t this odd? I’m Oprah Winfrey, and I’m reading a hospice booklet about what to say at the end.’”

“She was sitting in this small room — she liked sitting in this room where it was 80 degrees. She just watched TV all day,” Oprah described.

Oprah continued to share, “I said, ‘Thank you. Thank you for I know things were really hard for you. It was hard for you as a young girl having a baby in Mississippi. No education. No training. No skills. Seventeen years old, you had this baby. So many people would’ve told you to give the baby up. So many people would’ve told you to abort. You didn’t do that. I know that was hard. I want you to know that whatever happened, I know you always did the best you knew how. And look at the result.’”

Oprah’s Early Life and the Painful Memories

After Vernita Lee gave birth to Oprah in 1954, she left her baby to be raised by her mother, Hattie Mae Lee, in Mississippi while she worked as a domestic servant in Milwaukee.

Oprah was only six years old when she first moved in with her mother, after her grandmother fell ill. During this time, she was sexually assaulted and abused by family friends — whose identities remain private — while living with her mother in Milwaukee. These traumatic experiences marked a painful chapter in Oprah’s early life and continue to shape her journey.