Ricci has a son from her former marriage to James Heerdegen and a daughter with current husband Mark Hampton. She said that her feelings about being a real life mom are too \”personal and precious\” to share with the world. Ricci added that she definitely couldn’t bring herself to tackle the role of a mother caring for a sick child. She only started to really understand the acting process when she went to audition for a part in 1995 movie ‘Dolores Claiborne’ alongside its star Kathy Bates and in front of director Taylor Hackford. Now Ricci feels fully able to throw herself into her parts and sees it as a form of therapy. She added: \” (Now) when I get through really emotional scenes that I actually connect to them and I actually feel all the things that I’m saying and doing, it’s exhausting. The fact that I get to use my work as a way to work through my trauma and my emotional problems is a gift.\”