Valerie Bertinelli defends herself against critics who 'harshly' judged her skin-baring underwear snap.

Valerie Bertinelli has a stern message for those who "harshly" criticized her vulnerable photo that showed off her figure.

The celebrity chef shared on Instagram, "I hope you can find it in your hearts not to judge yourselves as harshly as you judge others, to those of you who would sit in judgment of my body, photo, and reason for posting it."

"My entire life, I have been subjected to judgment, beginning when I was a young girl. However, it has taken me a considerable amount of time to understand that my own judgment, with careful consideration, is the only judgment that truly matters."

The Food Network star, who is 64 years old, shared a skin-baring photo the day before, showing her in a black bra and matching underwear set in a bathroom selfie. In an emotional and honest social media post, she opened up about her self-worth.

"I am no longer interested in someone else's judgment of me since I have no power over it."

It took Bertinelli almost three years of "emotional labor" to "disregard mentally" others' judgments.

"For the first time in my life, I love my body as it is. I used to hate my 20 year old body, which was a shame because it was beautiful," she wrote in part.

"Despite the difficulties, I am thankful for this journey and wouldn't trade my current body for my 20-year-old body in a heartbeat. Always."

In her bathroom selfie, Bertinelli highlighted her "lump bump wrinkle and saggy" body parts, expressing her feelings of "acceptance" and "simple appreciation" for her life.

Bertinelli has recently decided to abstain from alcohol and concentrate more on her future rather than dwelling on the past.

She posts videos and motivational messages reminding her followers of the wonder of existing.

First came the work," she previously stated to People. "Why I believed I didn't deserve love. Why I used food to suppress my emotions. All the drama and trauma I hadn't dealt with - with Eddie Van Halen, my first husband and the father of my son, Wolfgang, and Tom Vitale, my last husband, whom I divorced in 2022.

Planet Chronicle Digital's Tracy Wright contributed to this report.