'The View' Co-Host Sunny Hostin Has 20 Hens That She Says Help With Her Self-Care Routine
Throughout her long, high-profile career—first as a federal prosecutor and later as a legal analyst and The View co-host—Sunny Hostin has focused on a singular mission: to give a voice to the voiceless. That intrinsic sense of justice took root early on—like, really early on—as a child growing up in a New York housing project. “There are lessons to be learned in adversity,” Hostin tells Women’s Health. “The South Bronx made me who I am, for better or for worse.”
Born to a Puerto Rican mother and an African American father, Hostin has often faced racism and bigotry. At the age of just 7 years old, she witnessed the stabbing of her uncle, and though he survived the initial attack, he would die years later from complications. That early brush with violence spurred Hostin to become a lawyer.
“When you see that kind of devastation and trauma at a young age, it shapes you,” she says. “It certainly shaped me.”
After a successful run as a federal prosecutor, she parlayed her legal expertise into a TV reporting role, and while at CNN, she became one of the first journalists to bring national attention to the tragic shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Hostin chronicles her career path, struggle with infertility (she suffered five miscarriages before carrying her firstborn son to term), and journey to reconcile her backgrounds in her new memoir, I Am These Truths (out September 22).
“I started to cover these issues of social justice in our country, and I started to realize that the themes of identity and intolerance and injustice that I experienced from a really young age, were really timely because they continued to happen,” she says of the inspiration to write the book. “And because I was able to overcome so many of them, I thought, Wow, I better put pen to paper and give people some hope.”
But, in order to spread hope and help others, Hostin realizes she also needs to nurture herself. Over the years, she’s developed a self-care toolkit that includes walking, stretching, and yoga.
“I keep thinking I’m going to get into meditation, but it is very hard for me to quiet my mind,” Hostin says. “I started doing yoga, and it’s wonderful. It centers me, and I find this sense of calm. I try to do it several times a week, at least.”
She also attributes a portion of her zen to a unique hobby inspired by Martha Stewart—raising hens.
A post shared by Hostin’s Hens (@hostins_hens) on Jan 29, 2019 at 12:54pm PST
“I started with four, and now I have 20,” she says. “It’s really therapeutic. They all have names and personalities. You know, they can remember 30 different phrases! They’re actually smarter than people give them credit for.” (According to Hostin, after recently doing a shoot with Stewart, the domestic goddess promised she’d give Hostin some geese to protect her hens!)
True to her calling, though, Hostin adds that no 24-hour period would be complete without doing a little good.
“I think that you can’t really live a perfect day without doing something for someone who can’t repay you,” she says. “That is my mantra.”
Hear more from Hostin on resilience, strength, and staying calm under pressure in her IGTV chat with Women’s Health editor-in-chief Liz Plosser:
You Might Also Like
