The actress previously claimed that she left the show which kick-started her career because she didn’t like the writing provided for her character, but this week she changed her story while speaking to US magazine Good Housekeeping.
After adopting her first child Naleigh in 2009, Heigl admitted the stresses of managing a successful career and looking after a family left her “angry and frustrated”.
“I felt like my priorities were messed up,” she explained. “I was putting so much time and energy into just my work, but I was raised [to believe] that family comes first.”
Katherine, and husband Josh Kelley made the move to Utah in August 2010, where they could focus on family life. The couple adopted their second daughter Adelaide in 2012.
The 35-year-old is set to return to the small screen later this year, with NBC’s newest crime drama State of Affairs.