Rio Ferdinand has given some brutally honest advice to parents after he and his children spent years recovering from the pain of losing his wife to cancer.
The former footballer, 45, welcomed three children, Lorenz, 17, Tate, 14, and Tia, 12, with his late wife Rebecca Ellison, who died of breast cancer at age 34 in 2015.
After taking on the role of mother and father, she has now reflected on her difficulties and told Tmirror that parents should avoid hiding their vulnerabilities from their children.
Rio said he believes showing kids that their parents aren’t “unbreakable” will help with their mental health in the long run.
He is now married to former TOWIE star Kate Ferdinand, 32, and they share two-year-old Cree and 10-month-old daughter Shea.
Rio Ferdinand has given some brutally honest advice to parents after he and his children spent years recovering from the pain of losing his wife to cancer.
The former footballer, 45, welcomed three children, Lorenz, 17, Tate, 14, and Tia, 12, with his late wife Rebecca Ellison (pictured in 2009), who died of breast cancer at 34 years old in 2015.
The father-of-five told the publication: ‘Sometimes parents seem unbreakable.
‘Dads can seem a bit macho and moms can seem like bionic women who juggle everything.
“But if I had any advice for parents it would be that showing vulnerability in front of children could help them with their mental health.”
When Rio lost Rebecca, they had been together for 15 years and were happily married for nine.
In his book Thinking Out Loud: Love, Grief and Being Mum and Dad, he talked about the depression and suicidal thoughts he had after losing his wife.
He admitted that he turned to whiskey and brandy to cope with the shock and pain.
Rio revealed that growing up on a council estate in Peckham, south-east London, emotions and mental health were not regularly discussed.
The football legend revealed that when he was a child he was sad, he was told to “cheer up”.
After taking on the role of mother and father, she has now reflected on her difficulties and told the Mirror that parents should avoid hiding their vulnerabilities from their children.
He said he believes showing kids that their parents aren’t “unbreakable” will help with their mental health in the long run (pictured with his youngest son, Cree).
He is now married to TOWIE’s Kate Ferdinand (pictured), 32, and they share two-year-old Cree and 10-month-old daughter Shea.
The former TOWIE star married the footballer in 2019 and became a stepfather to their now blended family.
Previously, Rio’s second wife, Kate, broke down and revealed in February 2024 the last act of altruism that Rio’s late wife, Rebecca, did for her family before she died.
She revealed that a month before her tragic death, Rebecca managed to go to her daughter Tia’s fourth birthday party.
Speaking about this on her Blended podcast with author Emily Dean, Kate said: “This is very emotional.” It makes me cry because Tia’s mother had also done that for her.
‘I don’t know if I’ve talked about this but his mission was to go to his birthday party.
‘It’s very similar and they were very sick but they had the strength to go to their children’s birthday party. It warms my heart, but it also saddens me.’
She continued: “I put myself in the position as a mother of thinking about anyone who is a parent and is going to pass away and what is going on in their head and in those final moments, they are still thinking about their children and what is happening.” . the best for her children.
“That excites me because it’s amazing that you can be so selfless and still put yourself at the bottom of the list.”