Shailene Woodley Suffered ‘So Much Trauma’ After Standing Rock Protest Arrest

Shailene Woodley had a rough time after standing up for her beliefs. The Hollywood actress got arrested late last year after she stood among the protestors in North Dakota who were against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. Woodley has now opened up about the harrowing experience and how she suffered PTSD symptoms following her arrest.

According to Woodley, authorities searched her body, including her private parts, when she got arrested in October 2016. “I was strip-searched. Like get naked, turn over, spread your butt cheeks, bend over,” she revealed to Marie Claire UK in a recent interview.

Theo James’ “Divergent” co-star said that the aggressive search took place when she was taken to the Morton County Jail. She even revealed that police officers looked for drugs in her behind at the time.

Woodley then said that she felt like a captured animal when she was locked behind bars. “When you’re in a jail cell and they shut that door, you realize no once can save you. If there’s a fare and they decide not to open the door, you’ll die. You are a caged animal,” the 25-year-old said.

The nightmare didn’t end for Woodley, who was arrested for trespassing and rioting, even after she was released. The “Fault In Our Stars” actress struggled with the negative repercussions of the incident months after. She claimed that she decided to switch off her phone for three months because she was experiencing PTSD symptoms at the time, People has learned. “There was so much trauma,” she said. “Mine was like, ‘What do I do now?’ Kind of like a little bit of depression.”

However, Woodley, who is a very outspoken advocate of Native American rights, may have fortunately moved on. Speaking with Stephen Colbert in February, she even joked about wanting to redo her mugshot. “I wish I’d known that this was going to be as public as it was,” she was quoted as saying by Us Weekly. “I would have made, like, a face. I’m just looking at the person [taking the photo] like, ‘Are you kidding me right now?’”

Despite what happened, Woodley is not thinking of backing away from her advocacies. In fact, she revealed to The New York Times last month that she’s open to running for Congress. “There was a point last year when I was working for Bernie Sanders where I thought, ‘Huh, maybe I’ll run for Congress in a couple years.’ And you know what? I’m not going to rule it out. Who knows? Life is big, and I’m young,” she said.