Valerie Bertinelli is known for her vulnerability—and outrageousness—and now the chef is cooking up a combination of both.

On Monday, she posted a bikini-clad reflection on Instagram and wrote in the caption that while she plans to “talk about the craziness my body has been through this year,” she finds the gratitude within herself just as she does is.

“But right now, every bump line and saggy part of me just feels acceptance and simple appreciation, standing in front of a mirror in a hotel bathroom in downtown Manhattan, ready to color my roots late Monday night,” she continued.

But Bertinelli didn’t hesitate to harshly condemn critics of her revealing photo in a follow-up post on Tuesday, telling fans: “I don’t care what you think.”

Valerie Bertinelli criticizes Food Network: “It’s no longer just about cooking or learning”

“For the first time in my life, I love my body the way it is. It’s not a 20 year old’s body that I hated and it’s a real shame that I hated that beautiful body,” she wrote, telling fans: “Yes, it was a very different body than the one which I now live in, but it had not yet gone through the journey that I had to go through.

“As challenging as it was and is, I am grateful for this journey and would never trade this body for my 20-year-old body,” Bertinelli added.

Addressing her message to her 1.6 million followers on Instagram, she said: “To everyone who judges my body, the photo and my reason for posting it, I hope you find a place in your heart where you don’t judge.” You must judge yourself as harshly as you judge others.

Over the past few months, Bertinelli has been open about her body and self-care journey.

The former Food Network star opened up about her personal body standards journey in an Instagram post in February.

“That’s a 150-pound body on a 5’4 frame. I don’t weigh myself anymore because that’s considered overweight by whoever’s standards I don’t know. It’s stupid and I believed them for far too long. Now I finally have “I know that I am a kind, considerate, funny and thoughtful woman,” Bertinelli captioned the post at the time.

“Please remember: who you are and your character should never be overshadowed by your height or weight. You are enough. Just the way you are,” she continued.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Valerie Bertinelli defends publication of bikini photo