Jana Kramer, 39, says the greatest gift she received on her birthday was no longer searching for 'validation' from others

Jana Kramer is reflecting on how far she’s come.

The One Tree Hill alum, who turned 39 on Friday, took to Instagram to write about how happy she is with the progress she's made following a tumultuous year.

Sharing a black and white photo of herself walking in water, Kramer wrote that she had a "little story for 39."

"I had therapy the other day and while I was sharing some things with [my therapist] I started to cry," the Steppin' Into the Holiday star wrote. "She asked me what the tears were. I couldn't answer because I started to cry more and she said 'it's because you're proud of yourself isn't it'. And I shook my head yes and cried even harder but not out of sadness. HAPPY TEARS… cause I never thought I would be here."

The mom of Jolie, 6, and Jace, 4, said the year was particularly special as "for the first time probably ever I've started to love who I am. What I am, and who I continue to become.

"38 was a year of an immense amount of growth and healing through some very hard things and as I look at who I am now at 39 I'm actually proud of myself and it felt really good to feel that," she continued. "I have always searched and wanted that validation from others but I have found it from within and that's the greatest birthday gift I could receive. 38, thanks for all the lessons and making me dig in… 39, I'm so excited to continue to grow, learn, heal and connect with others along the way. Celebrate ur victories. Big and small."

Kramer concluded her post with, "Thank you for all the birthday love. It means more than u know. I love being on this journey with all of you."

The Whine Down podcast host received lots of love from friends and followers in her comments section. One wrote, "Happy birthday! So proud of you! I hear how happy and strong you are in your voice during your podcasts! Makes me happy to hear." Another added, "Your journey is so motivating and powerful. I hope that 39 brings me that same relief and pride."

Kramer has long shared her healing journey with the world, which included overcoming Caussin's infidelity during their marriage. While she and Caussin had been open about the NFL player being unfaithful to her during their relationship — he sought out help for sex addiction in 2016, and the two discussed their ups and downs on their then-shared podcast Whine Down — Kramer said learning of new allegations of cheating in April 2021 led to their ultimate split.

In an interview with Yahoo Life, Kramer talked about why she found it important to discuss her path forward on social media.

"There of course were a lot of comments of 'Oh my God, we get it, get over it.' I think people just kind of saw the headlines of me talking about my ex again — but it wasn't about my ex. It was about forgiveness and how to move on," she said. "I think it's hard when I do talk about it. People just think I'm talking about him. Yes, he is a part of my path, and a part of my story, but it's really not about him anymore — it's about how I've gotten past infidelity, how I've been able to move on, and how I've been able to go into the next chapter."

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