The supermodel opens up about the challenges of homeschooling her kids through the pandemic and coping with sick parents.
Nearly one year after finalizing her divorce from Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen is looking back on a tumultuous time in her life.
The 43-year-old supermodel gets candid about her private struggles in a new interview with People, addressing how she coped with the challenges that came along with homeschooling her children through the pandemic, relocating their family to Tampa Bay, Florida, for her then-husband's final NFL seasons, while privately dealing with two ill parents.
"It's been very tough on my family. It's been a lot -- in every area of my life," she tells the magazine. "I feel like whenever it rains, it pours. With all the different twists and turns that life takes, all we can do is the best we can given what happens in our surroundings."
Bündchen says that she turned to meditation, daily exercise, and nutritional wellness to keep her going. She also reveals that she chose to stop drinking alcohol shortly after her 40th birthday.
"I think if I didn't have all the different tools that I have to support me during these times, it would've been very hard," she explains. "And I think we all can relate to that, because I think we all have gone through our roller coasters of life."
Bündchen and Brady announced the "amicable" end of their 13-year marriage in October 2022. At the time, Bündchen said in a statement, "The decision to end a marriage is never easy, but we have grown apart."
Together, the former couple shares two children: son Benjamin, 13, and daughter Vivian, 10. Brady is also dad to son Jack, 16, with actress Bridget Moynahan.
Since the split, Bündchen has settled in Miami, Florida, with her two children. The mag notes that Jack was raised primarily in New York City, but that Bündchen remains close with her former step-son.
While plugging her upcoming cookbook, Nourish, and a partnership with Gaia Herbs, Bündchen is keeping her focus on her physical well-being and mental health.
"Sometimes, we can get so disconnected from our bodies because we are running away from ourselves, so we just keep adding more things for us to do," she tells People. "Give me anything to eat, give me anything to drink. You're just in this mode. I feel like whenever you can bring yourself back into feeling your body and just being present, it’s great. You're kind of in your body and you're really present. You're breathing, you're connecting."
Moreover, Bündchen says that self-care is a crucial aspect of supporting herself and her family.
"People have been teaching us that it's selfish if you take care of you. How is that selfish?" she says. "When you feel good, you're a better mom, you're a better friend, you're calmer, you're more patient, you're more loving, you're more grounded. So you can't feel guilty about prioritizing yourself. Because that's loving you and loving the people you love the most, which are going to be impacted by how well you are. Because if you're sick, everyone's hurts."
Last month, Bündchen told Vogue Brazil that while she was married to Brady, she made sacrifices, including pausing her career.
"I moved to another city, slowed down my work pace and started a life," she said. "Worth it. I was able to experience motherhood fully and take care of my family."
And for Bündchen, working on herself is constant. "I work on myself every day and put all my love into everything I do," she explained. "I hope I can become a better and more aware person and continue to spread love wherever I go."
For his part, Brady is now enjoying his first year off the gridiron since retiring from professional football at the end of last season. Earlier this month, the 46-year-old former athlete made a triumphant return to Gillette Stadium -- home of his longtime team, the New England Patriots -- for a special ceremony alongside all three of his children.
"Nobody 23 years ago would have imagined that this journey would bring us here today," he mused. "It's one of my core beliefs, there's nothing significant in life that can be accomplished as an individual. It's always about the team. We built a culture of teammates that cared about two things: They cared about each other and they cared about winning. And if you didn't care about those two things, you did not last here very long. And we were very happy to play against you. So, I think we proved to America what teamwork's all about."
He'll be inducted into the team's Hall of Fame next spring.
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