Gisele Bundchen is reflecting on her divorce from Tom Brady after 13 years of marriage.
The pair, who share two children, called it quits last year in a high-profile split that dominated the headlines. Looking back, Bundchen, 43, admitted to Vogue Brazil that being in the spotlight and receiving that kind of media attention made it difficult to navigate a split.
"Breakups are never easy, especially when there's a whole media speculating every step of the way," Gisele said, according to the Daily Mail.
"I've always trusted that every situation, no matter how challenging, has something to teach us and happens for our growth."
Bundchen said she ignores the headlines and instead remains focused on "my children, my health and my projects and dreams."
She and Brady, 46, share Vivian, 10, and Benjamin, 13. Brady also has a 15-year-old son with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan.
Bundchen previously spoke openly about the end of her marriage to Brady in an interview with Vanity Fair, which she used as an opportunity to dismiss multiple rumors, including that she sought a divorce because Brady backed out of retirement to play football for one more season.
"That takes years to happen," she told the publication.
Bundchen went on to call the idea of leaving Brady because of his football career "the craziest thing I've ever heard."
"Listen, I have always cheered for him, and I would continue forever. If there's one person I want to be the happiest in the world, it's him, believe me," she said. "I want him to achieve and to conquer. I want all his dreams to come true. That's what I want, really, from the bottom of my heart."
Their marriage ending was not so clear-cut and simple.
"What's been said is one piece of a much bigger puzzle. It's not so black and white," Bundchen said.
"Sometimes you grow together; sometimes you grow apart," she added. "When I was 26 years old and he was 29 years old, we met, we wanted a family, we wanted things together. As time goes by, we realize that we just wanted different things, and now we have a choice to make. That doesn't mean you don't love the person.
"It just means that in order for you to be authentic and truly live the life that you want to live, you have to have somebody who can meet you in the middle, right? It's a dance. It's a balance."