Frankie Bridge has opened up about her mental health battles, revealing how a particularly bad day left her “in the depths of despair” and struggling to explain it to her young children. Speaking on Loose Women: The Podcast, the former Saturdays singer spoke candidly about how she handles discussions about anxiety and depression with her two sons, Parker and Carter.
While they are aware of her struggles with anxiety, she admitted she’s never had a full conversation with them about her depression, as she’s unsure how much they would truly understand. She recalled a moment when her youngest son accidentally witnessed one of her lowest points. “He caught me on a day I was having a particularly bad time. I was just really, really crying,” she shared. When he walked in and asked, ‘Mummy, are you okay? What’s wrong?’ Frankie panicked and, not wanting to overwhelm him, told him she had a migraine.
At the time, her son accepted the explanation, but months later, she realised how much it had stuck with him. “On my birthday, Wayne told me there was a present that Carter really wanted to get for me,” she said. When she opened it, she found two boxes of ibuprofen. “Should we get her something to help with migraines because she gets them really bad, doesn’t she?” her son had asked his dad, reported the Mirror.
While touched by his thoughtfulness, Frankie realised she would need to properly explain her mental health struggles to him. “Otherwise, every time he sees someone crying, he’s going to think they’ve got a migraine,” she said.
Beyond opening up about her mental health, Frankie has also hit back at the “double standards” she’s faced as a mother in the public eye. She revealed she’s been trolled online and even labelled the “worst wife and mother” simply for taking time for herself.
After battling a series of health issues, including discovering a benign tumour in her neck, she decided to take a short break—a four-day holiday with a friend. Encouraged by her husband, Wayne Bridge, she reluctantly took time away, hoping to reset her mental well-being.
But the backlash was swift. Online critics bombarded her with questions like “Who’s looking after the kids?” and “How does Wayne feel about you going away without him?” Frustrated by the double standards, she confronted Wayne, asking if he’d ever received similar comments when he went on holiday without her and the children. “And the simple answer was… no.”
Wayne, who retired from football at 35 and takes on most of the childcare, had gone on solo trips to Ibiza and snowboarding, yet not one person questioned his parenting. “The double standards were right there staring me in the face,” Frankie said.
Despite the criticism, she remains determined to challenge these outdated expectations, reminding women that taking time for themselves doesn’t make them bad mothers—it makes them human.
