Watch: Hayden Panettiere on What Really “Hurts” About Postpartum Struggles
Hayden Panettiere will always put her daughter Kaya first.
That’s why Nashville star said claims about her “abandoning” the 11-year-old when she signed over custody to ex-fiancé Wladimir Klitschko in 2018 amid struggles with postpartum depression and addiction “couldn’t be further from the truth.”
“The idea that anybody would think that I would just give away my child and be OK with it is heartbreaking,” Hayden told host Jay Shetty during the May 11 episode of the On Purpose podcast, calling out the “misconception is that I have been in the past forced into treatment when, in fact, I have been the one who sought it out.”
Describing herself a “mother lion,” the 36-year-old said she “would have burnt the world down” for Kaya’s sake. So, when Waldimir—who she dated from 2009 to 2018—thought “it would be best” for Kaya to live in Europe with him as Hayden sought treatment, the Heroes alum said she made the “incredibly difficult” decision to relinquish custody.
“It became this horrible cycle for years of battling depression, anxiety, alcoholism and substance abuse—and me just trying to find my way out of this darkness,” Hayden continued. “By the time I finally got healthy, I felt like it would have been unfair of me to and selfish of me to try to pull her out away from this life that that she had.”
In fact, Hayden said she has an “incredible relationship” with Kaya, who she frequently FaceTimes and visits in Europe.
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“She’s an incredible little girl—so happy, speaks five languages and rides horses,” the Bring It On: All or Nothing actress raved. “She’s got two parents that love her and I know in my heart that she feels supported.”
“She is happy and healthy mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually,” Hayden added. “She in no way feels abandoned—and that’s something that I’ve made sure to be stay on top of and be very aware of.”
For more former celebrity couples sharing insight into their co-parenting dynamics, read on.
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