Drew Barrymore Gives Advice on Chasing Dreams, Love and Holiday Decorating in ‘Dear Drew’ Column (Exclusive)

Drew Barrymore is a new contributor for Us Weekly. Below, the actress, talk show host and businesswoman gives advice to three readers:

Your questions answered, with love from me to you!

@lucyhstaples writes:
Dear Drew,
How do you balance chasing your dreams with being practical?

Oh, goodness, I might have to ask the question, “What is practical?” Because I think we’re talking about a feeling rather than a practice. I think we want to navigate our lives in such ways that we don’t do things that make us feel bad about ourselves. Being practical to me is when I behave in a way where I might be going after dreams, but I’m still able to feel good inside about my level of balance and attention that I’m giving to different areas of my life. Life is messy. So one way to stay “practical” is to be emotionally rational. And good luck, because it’s not easy. But we try. And we do our best.

Love, Drew

@magpie6060 writes:
Dear Drew,
Any tips about decorating for the holidays?

Find out who you are and commit to that. Are you the tacky, ugly Christmas sweater type? Do you lean into the holidays at all costs and go big or go home? Then do that. Or are you more Etsy and chic and curated? If so, do that and totally express yourself. I love to decorate the tree with my daughters every single year, because I did not have a childhood that was anything like that. I have the cardboard box and all the ornaments that evoke memories of when we got them, and I always play the Peanuts Christmas album when we do this, and it’s one of my favorite things. We must make our traditions especially felt, like they didn’t have enough of them growing up.

Love, Drew

@sjhottie5 writes:
Dear Drew,
How do you open up to even consider dating after divorce? I want to, but I’m hesitant.

Still haven’t completely. I am still a little surprised and delighted by my path right now. But, please, don’t feel bad about anyone’s timelines for moving forward. Everyone is unique in how we recover from lost love. We must reclaim what we feel is missing and get it for ourselves. And then we will have the capacity to give again. And trust is a big one, too. That can take a long time. And we cannot project anyone’s actions onto someone else. It was not them. It was someone else who you feel fear and pain from. It is you who must heal yourself, and then not project your past onto someone new in the present. These things take time. So give yourself the runway to be able to set yourself up for success — then you will be coming from a place of strength and not weakness.

Love, Drew

@john.mason.37 writes:
Dear Drew,
When you wake up each morning, what are you most thankful for?

One thing I feel like I’m not great at is that first morning thought! I don’t wake up going, “I’m grateful for this, and I’m so lucky to be alive.” I usually wake up and think: iced tea, alarm clock, get the kids dressed for school, get to work on time. And then as my day gets rolling, I can tell whether my gratitude is lacking somewhere and where I need to step up my perspective. I wish I was someone who woke up and took inventory of all the good things, but usually, I’m on a fiery autopilot of “get s**t done.” So when my kids are older, when my life is less busy, when I have more time to smell the roses… hopefully, I’ll be waking up with a new perspective. But you really got me thinking about that first thought. What’s funny is that I keep a gratitude journal, but I never do it first thing in the morning. I think I would have to set my alarm for 10 minutes earlier and not hit that snooze button (as I always do). And my morning routine is nothing to take advice from… in fact, you’re helping me realize mine is so out of whack. The good news is it’s never too late at any point in the day, afternoon or evening to get grateful. I am grateful for your prompt!

Love, Drew