Reese Witherspoon is finally opening up about the end of her marriage to Ryan Phillippe.

In the new issue of Elle magazine, Reese says, “Right around Christmastime I was sitting in a parking lot and I felt like I just couldn't get out of the car. It was like, I can't get out of the car."

Reese and Ryan split in October 2006. They have two children together: Ava, 8, and Deacon, 4.

Though that was her moment of desperation, Reese says she found strength by putting her painful divorce in perspective.

"I thought, Okay, half of the parking lot has dealt with this. More than half of the parking lot has dealt with this,” she says. “Okay, let's make it a little bigger. Half of this city has dealt with this. Okay, let's make it a little bigger – half of this country, until I finally got out of the car."

She adds, “It was this moment of self-discovery and loss of identity and who was stepping out of the car, you know? Who is that person?"

Elle hits stands in October.