Amy Jackson Westwick - I Was A Magnet For Narcissists

Amy Jackson Westwick is a major Bollywood film star with some 14 million followers on social media. Yet she grew up in a working class family in Liverpool. So how did a teenager from Merseyside become one of the most recognisable British actors working in Bollywood? Today on How To Fail, she tells us her story. We discuss growing up too fast, how she broke free from a cycle of narcissistic relationships and how she now manages a blended family (Amy has two sons - one with her husband, the actor Ed Westwick, and one from a previous partner). Plus: what she learned from her years in Bollywood and why she’s ’a petty cow’. ✨ IN THIS EPISODE: 00:00 Intro 03:13 Chasing Security Not Fame 04:08 Finding Yourself Again 06:35 Growing Up Too Fast 06:50 Liverpool Childhood Roots 11:27 Pageants to Bollywood Break 24:04 Perfect Family Fantasy 25:21 Romanticising Love 26:40 Back To Back Relationships 27:30 People Pleasing Patterns 29:06 Narcissists And Boundaries 31:53 Leaving And Healing 36:39 Blended Family Reality 39:52 Step Parenting Rules 47:05 Listening To Yourself 💬 QUOTES TO REMEMBER: Security comes in so many different forms - and for me it's peace of mind. If it doesn't feel right, then it's not right... you've got to actually know how you're feeling and not be afraid to voice it. [On narcissistic relationships]: I confused controlling behavior for somebody who was loving and caring, and in actual fact it was the complete opposite. 🔗 LINKS + MENTIONS: Amy’s podcast ‘What’s the Tea Amy?’ is out now The Testaments, a new Hulu original series, streaming April 8 exclusively on Disney+ Join the How To Fail community: www.howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content Elizabeth’s Substack: www.theelizabethday.substack.com 📚 WANT MORE? Lily Allen - on early fame, mistakes, relationships and motherhood: swap.fm/l/8Otj3tpmbH5SF4xjVHTJ Gillian Anderson - on body image, rebellion and refusing to fit in with other people’s expectations: swap.fm/l/7NyZMzkfVOpGyDtlB6k0 💌 LOVE THIS EPISODE? Subscribe on Spotify, Apple or wherever you get your podcasts Leave a 5⭐ review – it helps more people discover these stories 👋 Follow How To Fail & Elizabeth: Instagram: @elizabday TikTok: @howtofailpod Podcast Instagram: @howtofailpod Website: www.elizabethday.org Elizabeth and Amy answer listener questions in our subscriber series, Failing with Friends. Join our community of subscribers here: www.howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content Have a failure you’re trying to work through for Elizabeth to discuss? Click here to get in touch: howtofailpod.com Production & Post Production Coordinator: Eric Ryan Engineer: Matias Torres Assistant Producer: Shania Manderson Senior Producer: Hannah Talbot Executive Producer: Alex Lawless How to Fail is an Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment Production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com _________________________________________________________________________ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices