Kristen Stewart isn't "ashamed or confused" about her sexuality.

Kristen Stewart

Kristen Stewart

The 26-year-old actress - who recently sparked speculation she has split from long-term partner Alicia Cargile after being spotted out a number of times with Cara Delevingne's ex-girlfriend St. Vincent - thinks society has changed for the better and people are now more accepting of others.

She told America's Elle magazine: "I'm not ashamed and I'm not confused.

"Things have changed. And not just with me - we're really allowed to encourage this new acceptance and be awesome."

Following months of speculation, the 'Cafe Society' actress - who previously dated her 'Twilight' co-star Robert Pattinson for five years - confirmed her relationship with Alicia in July.

She said: "Right now I'm just really in love with my girlfriend. We've broken up a couple of times and gotten back together, and this time I was like, 'Finally, I can feel again.' "

The 'Equals' actress admitted she is more open about her personal life now she's in a same-sex relationship and feels much happier that she is being less closed off to people.

She said: "When I was dating a guy I was hiding everything that I did because everything personal felt like it was immediately trivialised, so I didn't like it.

"We were turned into these characters and placed into this ridiculous comic book, and I was like, 'That's mine. You're making my relationship something that it's not.' I didn't like that.

"But then it changed when I started dating a girl.

"I was like, 'Actually, to hide this provides the implication that I'm not down with it or I'm ashamed of it, so I had to alter how I approached being in public. It opened my life up and I'm so much happier."

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