Jennifer Aniston is promoting Marley and Me already, even though the film is not out in the states until Christmas. She has a new very candid interview with UK celebrity glossy Hello! and I was surprised at how open she came across. She doesn’t give a lot of personal details about her life, but she has a very emotionally honest and straightforward way of speaking that some might call blunt. She says that she’s been in therapy and that there’s nothing wrong with that. She also says that she gets “strength and energy from yoga, new age and cosmic energies.” It sounds a bit esoteric, but I’ve never lived in California so I can’t judge. The interview is long and filled with a lot of tidbits of wisdom from Aniston.

Have people wrongly categorised you?
“[Laughs] You’re not really seriously asking that question, right? I usually just go about ignoring such things but when someone says – as has often been incorrectly alleged – I’d abuse a romantic attachment as a publicity stunt or to promote a new movie of mine, that’s really just way below the belt.

“To love and be loved is the most beautiful thhing that can happen to a person, and one’s own life is much more important than all the glamour and fame in the world.”

How do you protect yourself from such misrepresentations?
“With humour. Even when it’s sometimes difficult to do: you can never allow yourself to lose your sense of humour… Life goes on and it’s just too wonderful to be spent singing the blues.”

Especially as you’ve been in love for a little while now…
“Aside from that, whoever said life is going to be a cakewalk? Life can be incredibly hard. [laughs] So people, you better buy yourself a safety helmet!”

Dealing with relationship problems, have you ever asked yourself: ‘What would Rachel, your character in Friends, do now?’
“Oh dear Lord, no! Certainly not. I’m pretty doggone sure that Rachel – with her usually very chaotic love life – would definitely not be the ideal person to take advice from.”

But you’re still pals with Courteney Cox?
“Naturally. Courteney and I have been accompanying one another through life for quite some time now. I trust her completely and she is very good at giving advice. She’s a good girlfriend. She’s got a really great family.”

Isn’t that one of your heart’s greatest desires? To have your own family?
“Naturally, it’s a beautiful thing to have a family. There are many things that are worthwhile. I can only say that I look at the future with a great deal of optimism. I will continue making movies and I hope to be able to make a few dreams come true.

“But much better than spending days making plans is to go out and create concrete opportunities!”

Next year, you’ll be celebrating the beginning of a new decade.
“Just feel free to say that I’m turning 40 next year.”

You still have the radiance of a 20-something. How do you do it?
“How about – lust for life? Otherwise, I do the best I can to keep myself fit, both in body and mind. I also draw a lot of strength and energy from yoga, new age and cosmic energies. I very much believe in karma: the way you treat your fellow man is how you’ll ultimately be treated yourself.”

A few months ago there were rumours that you underwent plastic surgery
“Oh yeah, that old story. I once had the degree of my deviated septum operated on. Since then, I can breathe much better and sleep nights like a baby. The rest of my body is all mine. And absolutely natural. And it’s going to stay that way. I am absolutely satisfied with what God gave me.”

Speaking of doctors, is it true that you’ve had psychiatric assistance?
“Boy, the way that sounds – as if I’m crazy! It’s true that I spent some time regularly taking part in sessions with a psychiatrist, an absolutely fantastic woman who unfortunately died not too long ago. By the way, I find it to be very normal to lie on a couch every once in a while and let your head be straightened out. And your hear. But please don’t write: ‘Jennifer Aniston is crazy!’ Promise? Let’s go back to talking about the movie.”

Is there anything man can learn from dogs?
“It sure would be all that bad if a man, when he came home and opened the door, ran to his woman with his tail wagging and smooched her up. This wholehearted excitement is something I’ve always missed in men, to be quite honest.”

Could you offer some advice about how men and women could get along with each other better?
“You’re asking me? Well, yes, I do have some advice: men and women should communicate more honestly with one another. We really are very different. That’s why it’d be important that we listen to one another. Sounds very simple, but quite complicated in real life.”

[From Hello! Magazine, print edition, August 18, 2008]

She also put to rest the rumors of another Friends movie, saying “I believe that wouldn’t be a very good idea. Friends was a wonderful time in my life and is now – like so many other things – a chapter that’s been closed. Let’s keep looking forward.”

I’m not a big Aniston fan. I really liked her on Friends, but with all the interviews she gave after you-know-what I got a bad impression of her. She has such a matter-of-fact way of stating things that it can come across as too harsh and a little off-putting. It’s almost as if she’s rolling her eyes at times while she’s talking.

She’s done a lot of soul-searching, and I admire the fact that she is so open about going to therapy and using alternative methods to help her make sense of life. I think it reduces the stigma when celebrities admit that they’ve used therapy and/or medication to help get through tough times.

When asked about being in love, it’s telling that she said “Aside from that,” and changed the subject. Aniston and John Mayer are now holed up in a suite at the Four Seasons in LA. They’re probably talking themselves into a tizzy right now.

Jennifer Aniston is shown outside her agent’s office on 8/5/08 and with John Mayer on 5/10/08. Credit: Fame Pictures