Halle Berry has been busy dazzling photogs on the red carpet recently, hamming it up for a new Farrelly Brothers comedy, and enjoying a new romance with Olivier Martinez -- but she says that despite her glamorous adulthood, she's still healing from the trauma she witnessed in her childhood home.

The Oscar winner, 44, opened up to CNN recently about what motivates her to work with an organization that supports women who escape violent homes.

Berry recalls being terrified that her violent dad, who physically abused her mom, would turn on her, adding, "I think I've spent my adult life dealing with the sense of low self-esteem that sort of implanted in me. Somehow I felt not worthy." As incredible as that sounds coming from a highly paid, highly photogenic movie star, she explains, "Before I'm 'Halle Berry,' I'm little Halle....a little girl growing in this environment that damaged me...I've spent my adult life trying to really heal from that."

Of her dedication to supporting others trying to escape domestic violence -- including frequent volunteering at Jenesse Center, a Los Angeles shelter, and helping to renovate apartments for women leaving abusive relationships -- she says, "I have a spot in my soul that understands the devastation that this causes a family." Watch Berry opening up more about her past in this CNN clip: