Jennifer Lopez says she and Ben Affleck suffer from trauma due to media frenzy

Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck | Image: @jlo IG

Jennifer Lopez admitted that intense media coverage of her on-and-off relationship with Ben Affleck took a toll on the both of them, citing that they both have post-traumatic stress because of it.

Sitting down with Variety, the singer-actress said that they’re both hesitant to get back together after their first split because everyone was against it, but eventually she ended up deciding for herself.

“As artists, we have to follow our hearts, and this is me following my heart and doing something that maybe everybody didn’t think was the best idea, but I had to do it,” said Lopez.

The Latin pop culture icon revealed that they had too much stress dealing with media scrutiny but affirmed that the chaos also made them wiser.

“We both have PTSD. But we’re older now. We’re wiser. We also know what’s important and what’s really important in life, and it’s not so much what other people think. It’s about being true to who you are,” she said.

Lopez and Affleck first dated in early 2002, then ended up separating after two years. During the years that they were not together, they both pursued other relationships and started families of their own.

Lopez was married to Marc Anthony from 2004 to 2014, and they became parents to twins Max and Emme. Meanwhile, Affleck was married to Jennifer Garner from 2005 to 2018, and they have three kids together: daughters Violet and Seraphina and son Samuel.

The relationship was rekindled in 2021, and they tied the knot in Las Vegas in July 2022.

“It’s a beautiful outcome that this has happened in this way at this time in our lives where we can really appreciate and celebrate each other and respect each other,” wrote Lopez in her announcement. “We always did, but we have even more of an appreciation because we know that life can take you in different directions.”

“We have been in the game, in the public eye long enough to know who we are as people and what really matters and what doesn’t matter. We really live our lives in a way we can be proud of and our kids can be proud of. We’re just operating from a place of love and respect for everyone in our lives, and that is very important to us,” added the actress.