Gwyneth Paltrow Reveals Battle With Past 'Frenemy'

Gwyneth Paltrow attends the Bent On Learning Charity event at Stephen Weiss Studio on February 25, 2009 in New York City<br />Getty ImagesAccess Hollywood

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Gwyneth Paltrow has never been one to make her private battles public.

But in her latest GOOP Newsletter, the Oscar winner revealed a past battle with a former friend-turned-foe.

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"Back in the day, I had a 'frenemy' who, as it turned out, was pretty hell-bent on taking me down. This person really did what they could to hurt me," Gwyneth revealed. "I was deeply upset, I was angry, I was all of those things you feel when you find out that someone you thought you liked was venomous and dangerous."

And while she wouldn't reveal who the individual who wronged her was, Gwyneth said she tried her best to not retaliate against her "frenemy."

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"I restrained myself from fighting back. I tried to take the high road. But one day I heard that something unfortunate and humiliating had happened to this person. And my reaction was deep relief and...happiness. There went the high road," she added.

Reports surfaced online on Thursday suggesting the unnamed person was actress Winona Ryder - Gwyneth's former BFF who was rumored to be upset when Gwyneth earned the lead in "Shakespeare in Love" - a role which won her an Oscar.

Winona was reportedly being considered for the role, as well.

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However, in a statement to Access Hollywood on Thursday, a rep for Gwyneth said the point of the latest GOOP wasn't to point fingers.

"Actually the whole point of the piece is not naming names but to explore why is it that people are so interested in the negative. There is no reason or basis to make the assumption she is referring to Winona Ryder ," the rep told Access.

In exploring the root of an "evil tongue," Gwyneth turned to a few "sages" for insight into the human psyche.

"In general I believe that the need to speak 'evil' or to relish in other's problems is a fast and cheap way to falsely raise one's own self esteem," psychologist Dr. Karen Binder-Brynes wrote in the GOOP newsletter.

"The gratification of putting someone down, or even hearing or reading such words spoken by others, gives us the sense of being better than others and pleasure at somebody else's expense," Zen Master Dennis Genpo Merzel added.

However, Gwyneth doesn't appear to be spending too much time delving into deep personal issues - next week's GOOP topic?

"Next week we make a light and delicious meal of Italian-inspired small plates perfect for stress-free entertaining," she wrote.

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