Actress Jessica Alba said she had to be someone she wasn’t during her early days in Hollywood to avoid being preyed upon.

“I was a warrior,” Alba told CNN’s Chris Wallace. “I was really tough, man. I cursed like a sailor, and I was very — I think I tried to make myself as unavailable as possible so that I wouldn’t be taken advantage of.”

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At the age of 13, Alba got her start in Hollywood with a role in the 1994 film Camp Nowhere and a recurring role in the Nickelodeon comedy series The Secret World of Alex Mack. She is perhaps best known for her roles in Dark Angel, Fantastic Four, and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For.

“I guess I understood that I needed to help sell the product,” Alba said when asked about being portrayed as a sex symbol. “They sell it how they do, so I understood it as a business decision and a strategy."

Alba said it wasn’t until she became a mother that she began to appreciate her femininity. She said she decided to step away from the industry after reaching a point of exhaustion with having to protect herself constantly.

“I think at the time, I felt a bit tapped out with entertainment, with where it was at,” Alba said. “I just took a step back and kind of let it do its thing.”

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She noted that she still has a passion for telling stories but that today she thinks of her purpose differently.

Alba has launched her own business, The Honest Company, which sells household, baby, and personal products.