Former The Bachelor star Tara Pavlovic has spoken out about the end of her marriage, saying her mental health – and the wellbeing of her two young children – was the reason she finally called it quits.
The 36-year-old announced her separation from husband Nick Shepherdson in April after five years together. Speaking publicly for the first time about the split, Tara says it was a long time coming – describing it as a “last resort” after almost a year of struggling in the relationship.
“Having a mother who is not coping mentally is not in the kids’ best interests,” she told 9Honey. “I left to put myself first, but I also left to put them first, because I wasn’t coping at all with the way things were.”
For anyone following her on social media, the signs had been hard to miss. Tara admitted her difficult year had played out in plain sight online, even if she’d kept the full story to herself.
She broke the news on Instagram, describing the past eight months as “incredibly challenging” and saying she had been “an absolute mess.” She also opened up about how her body had been telling her something was wrong long before she was ready to face it.
“I don’t think I fully realised how much it was affecting me until I started to feel calm again,” she wrote. “Sometimes your body knows long before your mind is ready to accept it.”
Now navigating life as a single mum to son Paddy, four, and daughter Edi-Rae, three, Tara says things are starting to feel better – though she’s been quick to point out that divorce is nothing to celebrate.
“I don’t want to normalise everyone getting a divorce. It was a last resort, and I don’t want to ever glamourise it.”
As for the details of what went wrong, Tara says those will stay private for the sake of her kids and to protect the co-parenting relationship she and Nick are building.
Still, she admits she’s ready to move forward. “I’m finally feeling back in alignment with myself, and for the first time in a long time, I feel excited for what’s ahead,” she said – adding with trademark honesty: “Do I believe in love anymore? Absolutely not. But I hope one day I will again.”
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