Ariel Winter says 'really deep' childhood trauma caused her to leave Hollywood aged 22

Ariel Winter has said her ‘really deep’ childhood trauma led to her decision to leave Hollywood.

The 27-year-old pretty much grew up on our screens as the middle child Alex Dunphy on Modern Family. But off-screen, her life wasn’t quite as fun and sweet as she faced scrutiny and trolls, endlessly discussing her appearance as she naturally grew and changed into a young woman.

“It was every headline I read about myself, like, grown people writing articles about me saying how I looked terrible or pregnant or like a fat sl*t. I mean, I was 14,” she told PEOPLE. “It totally damaged my self-esteem.”

And once the hit sitcom wrapped its final season (I know, I miss it too) in April 2022, Winter and her boyfriend, fellow child star Luke Benward, made the decision to move out of Los Angeles.

Winter is part of the iconic Modern Family cast. (ABC)

The actor, who also voiced Gretchen in Phineas and Ferb, was raised in LA and had been acting on-screen in adverts from the age of four.

While she began to feel like ‘a target’ in the media and online, things were also difficult at home as she’s previously accused her mum, Chrisoula Workman, of abuse. Her mother has publicly denied any allegations of abuse and when Winter was 14, she was placed in the care of her older sister, Shanelle Gray.

“I went on to have a great rest of my teenage years thanks to being under her custody,” she said.

Winter didn’t go into too much detail about what she went through but added that her ‘entire childhood’ is her single biggest source of trauma.

“It’s a really deep, painful, sore, sore part for me that’s so much deeper and bigger than I’ve ever felt ready to talk about,” she explained.

The Last Movie Star actor says she’s now able to look back with ‘clarity and peace of mind’ having moved out to Nashville and having therapy.

Winter left LA once the final season wrapped. (Todd Wawrychuk/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images

With two films lined up for this year (one of which she’s also a producer), Winter notes that while she left the location she ‘didn’t leave the industry.'

As well as her on-screen appearances, the star is also starting a podcast and developing a cooking show.

“I just left the city of L.A. It holds some not-great memories for me, and I’m young and never lived anywhere else, and thought, ‘Why not?’” she explained.

“If you’re no longer on a network show that shoots there, you don’t really have to be there, and if I get a network show, I can easily go back.”

As well as staying in the industry, Winter has started volunteering at SOSA (Safe from Online Sex Abuse) as a ‘decoy’ to lure in internet paedophiles and lead to their arrest.

“Technically, yes, I’m a survivor. I’ve gone through some s**t," the star added. "But a lot of people have gone through some s**t. Calling me a survivor takes away from what I’m here for, which is to help others and shine a spotlight on those that need it. More than anything, I want my story to be that she uses her platform for good. My journey to figuring things out and healing is now through helping other people. That’s all I care about.”