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It’s been five months since Celeste Barber’s “hot husband” Api Robin shocked fans by announcing that “after much reflection” the decision had “been made” for the pair to separate.
In the time since – after a period of social media silence – Celeste has embarked on a UK and Europe tour, returned to sharing snapshots into her life and started recreating the celebrity parody videos that garnered her 9.5 million followers on Instagram alone.
But one post that the comedian shared in June sparked an outpouring of support for the star – after it appeared to suggest she was going through a difficult time.
The Instagram post in question saw Celeste – who is the founder of beauty brand Booie – share a series of photos of her life lately. In one she could be seen lying on a towel, looking miserably at the camera with a flannel clamped to her eye.
“This chapter of my spiral brought to you by – Stress sty. Wine. Booie. Janet. T*ts. Knicks. Art. The King. Anxiety. BOOIE. Inside. Relatable. Company. Birthday Betty. Influencing,” Celeste wrote, referring to what each photo depicted in the accompanying caption.
Her followers quickly responded with concern in the comments section.
“Take it easy you wonderful woman,” wrote former Today Show star Lisa Wilkinson. “Oh darling. Sending all the love,” shared celebrity cook Nigella Lawson.
Now, an insider tells Woman’s Day that, privately, friends are also worried about Celeste and are urging her to stop pushing herself so hard post-split.
“There’s putting on a brave front and then there’s throwing herself into so many projects she doesn’t have time to deal with her heartbreak and Celeste has been non-stop since the split,” the source shared.
“Everyone’s urging her to slow down, take some time, regroup and rebuild, but instead it’s as if she’s trying to NOT stop and think.
“The big worry is she’s pushing herself way too hard and it’s all going to end in burnout.”
The insider pointed to Celeste’s recent eye stye as a “reg flag” which could suggest the star feels stressed, however they claim the star has “convinced herself a successful business and comeback is the answer to her pain”.
“Even though it’s been months since the split, it’s still very raw and she’s still unable to talk about it,” the source adds.
“The only hope is she’s still got her sense of humour, but there’s a growing number of friends urging her to take a break, even go on an ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ adventure. She wants to move forward but she’s got to deal with losing Api before anything else.”
While Celeste keeps herself busy with projects her ex – with whom she shares sons Lou and Buddy – has revealed he turned to therapy to deal with the fallout of the marriage breakdown.
“I’ve done plenty of therapy. I’ve talked to plenty of friends. I’m okay,” the arborist and surfer told the Daily Mail in May, before adding, “And I think she is, too.”
A source previously told Woman’s Day that despite the heartache there will “always be a lot of love and respect” between Celeste and Api.
“For a while there, friends thought they might get back together,” the source said. “But it’s becoming clear that both of them have no intention of reuniting.”
