With three divorces under her belt, Jennifer Lopez has endured more heartache than most. But it wasn't until she and Marc Anthony** split in July 2011 that she realized how unhappy she had been.

"When I did the movie [Parker], I had just decided to get divorced myself. I felt in that low place. It was the worst time in my life, as well," Lopez tells USA Today. In the film, which also stars Jason Statham, Lopez plays a bankrupt divorcee. "When [the director] first called me, I wasn't thinking about divorce at all. Suddenly it happened and my whole world fell apart and then I had this therapy of this character. Everything happens for a reason. It's true. It actually is true."

Lopez, 43, and Anthony, 44, are parents to twins Max and Emme, 4. The tots "didn't know anything" about their separation at first, according to Lopez. "They're starting to figure it out now, a year and a half later. They were just 3 at the time."

Previously wed to Ojani Noa and Cris Judd, Lopez has found love again with backup dancer turned choreography Casper Smart, 25. The two have been dating for more than a year. "He's a nice person. My life is really good right now," the mother of two says of Smart. "I'm at a point where I'm able to make decisions based on what I really want to do. I'm making decisions based on what I feel, which is never wrong no matter what the outcome is."

With her love life back on track, Lopez hopes to make more movies. "I'm going to focus on films right now," she tells USA Today. "I'm working on a new album, but I feel like I have more time on that. I might do a Christmas album. This is going to be my 10th album. It has to be great or I'm not putting it out. I'm never not working on music."

This article originally appeared on Usmagazine.com: Jennifer Lopez: My "Whole World Fell Apart" After Marc Anthony Divorce