Over the course of Tamera Mowry-Housley’s career, the Sister, Sister actress has learned a thing or two about surviving and thriving in Hollywood. However, Mowry-Housley told The School of Greatness podcast that the latter part of her career was challenging while she working on The Real, according to Essence.

From 2013 to 2020, the former child star hosted the Fox talk show alongside Adrienne Houghton, Jeannie Mai Jenkins and Loni Love, Showbiz Cheat Sheet reports.

“Being on a talk show, and you can take it or leave it, is not a safe place,” the actress shared with host Lewis Howes. “And I wish someone would have told me that because I would have been prepared, and I was not.”

Mowry-Housley also discussed the emotional effort being on a talk show requires and got candid about the level of criticism and clickbait chaos she faced throughout her time on the show.

“They will take what you say and they’ll use it out of context to fit their narrative of who they think you are,” she said. “And that’s what happened for years on that show,” she said, adding it was like “going to battle, but you don’t know you’re going to battle. And then people come and they start fighting and have to do all these things to [protect yourself].”

Mowry-Housley said it took her until the end of her run on the show to feel fully “armed.”

“You can literally watch the beginning of the season to the end season and [by the end] you see this strong warrior,” she said of herself on the show.

The actress added that she’s thankful for her initial unawareness.

“I wasn’t supposed to know it wasn’t a safe place, because I wouldn’t be who I am now,” she said on the podcast. “I learned so much about myself doing that show.”

Of what she’s taken away from the experience, Mowry-Housley explained that she feels freer to be herself.

“I learned that it’s okay not to be perfect,” she said. “I learned that it’s okay to be vulnerable. And it is okay to speak your truth.”