Kim Got Real About How She Talks To Her Kids About Her Divorce
"You want to be sensitive because they're just kids."
It’s no secret to the public that Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s divorce was a messy one. But the full extent of just how bad it got still is a secret from the couple’s children. Now that her four kids are growing up, Kardashian opened up about how she fields the tricky questions they have for her about the split. Her main rule? “Be open,” but “never go negative.”
Divorce is always a tricky topic to discuss with young children, but it’s particularly difficult in Kardashian’s case. Her contentious divorce from West lasted nearly two years, from first filing at the beginning of 2021 to finally reaching a settlement at the end of 2022. During that time, West stirred up a constant whirlwind of drama by bashing Kardashian’s family and relationship on social media, and accusing Kardashian of keeping the kids away from him.
The couple shares four children together: North, 10, Saint, 7, Chicago, 5, and Psalm, 4. In her Nov. 14 GQ profile, Kardashian admitted she it’s not always easy to answer her kids’ questions about why mom and dad aren’t together.
“Ultimately, what matters is that kids feel loved and heard,” Kim said. “You want to be sensitive because they're just kids, and it's hard to go through no matter what age. You have to make sure that you only go to a level that they can understand. It's okay to show a vulnerable side. You never go to a negative side.”
The hardest part is keeping up a brave face in front of her kids. Kardashian emphasized that although she’s become adept at managing her emotions, she still feels the full force of them. “Just because I know how to manage my stress well doesn't mean that I don't feel the emotions,” she said. “If I'm sad, of course I will cry and feel it.”
Kardashian also gets support from a therapist as well as her friends when she needs help on how to handle sensitive topics with her kids.
“I do have a therapist that only deals in child psychology that I talk to to get parenting tips and advice,” Kardashian said. “Sometimes I feel challenged by parenting. But I have the best group of friends and we talk about everything together, so that to me is therapy.”
