Gwyneth Paltrow compiled a “data collection” to help prepare her kids for her divorce.
The 51-year-old star, who has daughter Apple, 19, and son Moses, 17, with ex-husband Chris Martin, wanted to research other people whose parents had got divorced to help decide how she would approach her own split from the Coldplay singer in 2016.
She told Bustle magazine: “My kids are great. They’re grounded and grateful and funny.
“But [Chris Martin] and I both really did not want to have them experience the divorce as a trauma…
“We knew it would be hard, of course, but we didn’t want them to ever feel in the middle, or that one of us was slagging off the other one.
“At that time, I did a very me thing, which was when I knew I wanted to get a divorce, I did this data collection of talking to adults who had been products of a broken home.”
The Goop founder’s research showed her that the biggest struggle for children whose parents split up was if they “wouldn’t speak to each other.”
She added: “Every single one of them said, ‘I didn’t care that my parents got divorced. That wasn’t it.
“But the fact that they wouldn’t speak to each other, that they couldn’t both sit at a dinner table for my birthday…’ They said that was the most awful thing.
“You could see they held it with so much hurt and anger. I was like, ‘That’s what I’m never going to do.’ And we really didn’t.”
Gwyneth, who has remained close to Chris since their breakup, recently shared some parenting advice, urging people to “trust your instincts.”
She told fans during an Instagram question and answer session: “Definitely my best parenting advice, and I say this all the time, is mother knows best.
“Trust your instincts. If you have any questions about this food, that food, anything, I really believe that you know the answer implicitly and just trust your instincts.”
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Gallery Credit: Michele Bird