Whenever we look at celebrities in Hollywood, we couldn't help but describe their lives as nothing but lavish and flawless - it could be because of the roles that they portray or how impeccable they look in interviews and paparazzi shots. What we don't know is that most of them, just like the majority of us, had to crawl through the obstacle tunnel of life to get where they are now. Here are 5 of them:

Oprah Winfrey. She is the most solid proof that hard work and a good attitude can really take you places. Winfrey was born to an unwed teenage mother but what raised by her grandmother. The talk show host later then lived with her mother and a half-sister in a boarding house in Milwaukee. They only relied on welfare. As of today, she is reportedly worth $2.7 billion.

Jim Carrey. As one of Hollywood's most celebrated comedians, Carrey probably didn't have much to laugh about before everything fell into place for him. Together with his family, he lived in a van after they've lost their home. When his father got laid off, he dropped out of high school to take on jobs like being a janitor and a security guard. According to Forbes, Carrey makes around $20 million per movie.  

J.K. Rowling. Before the blessing of her life that is the Harry Potter series came, the famous author was a depression warrior and a single mother who only relied on welfare. During the lowest point of her life, where she even recalls herself as 'the biggest failure' she knew, she wandered around Edinburgh to look for various cafes where she could work on the Harry Potter manuscripts.

Sarah Jessica Parker. Born to a big family of eight children, Sex and the City's Carrie Bradshaw and a New York City style icon struggled to get by. Her mother and stepfather who was a truck driver had a hard time trying to feed all eight of them. At age 11, she was able to have her big Broadway break as Annie. Her career took off since then.

Sean "Diddy" Combs. Living at a public housing project in Harlem, Diddy's father Melvin Combs was shot to death at the age of 33 due to his association with New York drug dealer Frank Lucas. He took up business at Howard University but dropped out in 1989 to pursue his music dreams. He now has his own label, Bad Boy Records.