"I thought I was going to die": The reason Kim Jeong-hwa suddenly disappeared

Actress Kim Jeong-hwa has revealed the reason she abruptly stopped her activities at the height of her career.

On the 30th, a video titled "The Reason I Suddenly Disappeared After Giving Up Everything" was posted on Kim Jeong-hwa's YouTube channel.

In the video, recalling her peak years, Kim Jeong-hwa said, "I paid the 'tuition of time.' There were periods when I wandered. Although I am a lifelong believer, there were confusing times during my life in the entertainment industry."

Kim Jeong-hwa added, "There were moments that couldn't even be called those of a believer. Of course, I didn't do anything terribly bad, but there were times when I felt God would not have been pleased," and remarked, "I felt it was a waste to have spent time wandering."

When the production team asked, "You were a lifelong believer; was there a specific trigger that led you to regain your faith?" her husband Yoo Eun-seong pointed to Kim Jeong-hwa and said, "She got a little sick."

Kim Jeong-hwa explained, "As I continued living like this, I reached a point where I might have had really negative thoughts, so I decided to stop all activities." Yoo Eun-seong added, "That was the time when she was at her absolute peak."

Continuing, Kim Jeong-hwa recalled, "At that time, I was very active, so letting go of it wasn't easy. Even my agency opposed it, but I stopped because I felt like I was going to die. To others, it looked glamorous and wonderful, as if I was at the height of my success, but inside, I was dead and dying."

Kim Jeong-hwa, who was in her mid-20s at the time, responded to the production team's question, "Did you want to quit work and just relax?" by saying, "While being in the entertainment industry, I saw many things. Because of what I saw and heard, I never had thoughts like wanting to go out and play."

In response, Yoo Eun-seong joked, "Someone like her should be on a path of spiritual cultivation. She's almost like a clergy member," which drew laughter from everyone.

Born in 1983, Kim Jeong-hwa debuted in the entertainment industry in 2000 through Lee Seung-hwan's music video "You Are You." Although she received great love for her roles in MBC sitcoms like "Nonstop" and dramas such as "Into the Sun" and "Snow White," she ceased her entertainment activities starting from her marriage to Yoo Eun-seong in 2013.