Gisele Bundchen has revealed doctors warned her she would die if she didn’t drastically change her lifestyle.
The Brazilian supermodel, 41, was one of the highest paid supermodels in the world in her 20s and was credited with ending the heroin-chic era of modeling because of her curvaceous figure, but has now revealed she may have looked healthy secretly fought several health demons.
Speaking to British Vogue, Gisele admitted she’s “hit rock bottom” as she’s been drinking too much and chain smoking while suffering from “crippling anxiety and panic attacks.”
She explained: “From the outside it looked like I had everything and I was only 22 years old. Inside, feeling like I’d hit rock bottom, I started my day with a mocha frappuccino with whipped cream and three cigarettes, then drank a bottle of wine each night. Imagine what that did to my mind…
‘I suffered from crippling anxiety’: Gisele Bundchen has revealed she would be drinking a bottle of wine a night and chain smoking in her 20s before doctors warned her she would die if she didn’t change her lifestyle (pictured in 2000 at the age of 21).
Gisele recalled how a friend recommended that she seek help from a naturopath, who immediately prescribed a comprehensive detox.
Removing sugar, grains, dairy, caffeine, alcohol and cigarettes from her lifestyle has been associated with intense withdrawal symptoms, the runway star explained.
“I think that was the worst migraine I’ve ever had in my life. The doctor, he was French, called me Adrenalina. I remember he said, “Well, do you want to live?” It was that easy.’
Three months later, Gisele’s debilitating symptoms had all but disappeared, and the star rose daily at 5 a.m. to meditate and exercise.
Now in her 40s and happily married with two kids, she shared how she feels “like I’m just starting out.”
Covergirl: Speaking to British Vogue, Gisele admitted that she “hit rock bottom” from drinking too much and chain smoking while suffering from “crippling anxiety and panic attacks.”
She revealed, “I think I feel better in my 40s than in my 20s and not just physically because we’re all told that life is over at 40 and I feel like I’m just getting started.”
In December 2006, Gisele met her now-husband, NFL quarterback Tom Brady, on a blind date.
Three years and two months later, the two tied the knot in a small ceremony in Santa Monica and had two children, Benjamin, 12, and nine-year-old Vivian.
Gisele is also stepmother to Tom’s teenage son John, 14, from her husband’s previous relationship.
The former Victoria’s Secret Angel believes the key to a successful partnership is “to be really in sync,” but revealed why raising kids with the seven-time Super Bowl champion isn’t the “fairy tale” most have introduce people.
Long-lasting love: In December 2006, Gisele met her now-husband, NFL quarterback Tom Brady, on a blind date. They tied the knot three years later (pictured May 2018)
Sharing her wisdom, she said, “I don’t think relationships just happen; it’s never the fairy tale people want to believe. It takes work to really be in sync with someone, especially after you have kids.
‘His [Tom’s] The focus is on his career, for me especially on the children. And I’m very grateful that he lets me take the reins when it comes to our family. He trusts my decisions.’
The Brazilian beauty went on to explain that successful relationships “don’t just happen” and recalled times when they didn’t always see eye to eye.
“I remember in the beginning he wasn’t into the idea of a home birth,” she told the magazine. “He said, ‘You’re not going to do this because you’re going to die.’
Eventually, after showing him several videos about home births, she said he came on board.
“I have made it clear that this is my body and I will choose how I will give birth,” the mother-of-two explained.
Fond memories: The couple have two children, Benjamin, 12, and nine-year-old Vivian. Giselle is also stepmother to Tom’s teenage son John, 14, (back left) from his previous relationship (pictured in February).
Alongside a printed interview with the fashion bible, Gisele sat down to video chat in which she recalled one of the “most traumatic moments” of her career — when she burst into tears at an Alexander McQueen fashion show in 1998 when she saw the incredible skimpy, topless outfit that she had to show off on the catwalk.
Gisele was just 18 when she made her London Fashion Week debut in the late ’90s, an experience she now describes as one of the darker memories of her decades-long career.
“That was one of the most traumatizing moments,” Gisele recalled, adding, “I didn’t have a fitting, so when I showed up at the show I was like, ‘So what am I wearing?’
‘I could say a few words [in English at the time] but I didn’t understand half of the things [so] I was just pretending to get it. I had no idea. And I thought, “Is it a t-shirt or something?” No, it was. So I started crying.’
Flashing flesh: Gisele also recalled one of the “most traumatic moments” of her career — when she broke down in tears at an Alexander McQueen fashion show in 1998 when she saw the impossibly skimpy, topless outfit she had to model
However, according to Gisele, her emotional outburst was upsetting not only for her — but also for the makeup artist, who begged her to stop crying so she wouldn’t ruin the work they’d done on her face.
“I had these feathers attached to my eyelashes so when I cried they came off and the makeup artist was like, ‘Please don’t cry!'” she recalls. “I kept walking around and I was like, ‘I hope my dad never sees this picture. That’s why I have the memory of this show.’
However, the model insists she wrote off the “traumatizing” experience as a learning opportunity, adding, “I just wanted to leave but, you know, it’s one of those things that makes you stronger.”
Gisele also shared her shock at having earned a spot on the catwalk lineup, explaining that she went to dozens of auditions ahead of London Fashion Week only for designers and her staff to refuse to look at her book simply because it didn’t fit the then-popular “heroin-chic” aesthetic.
“I didn’t speak English, it was my first show season in London, I did 42 auditions,” she said. “I remember going to all these auditions and nobody even looking at my book because it was the ‘heroin chic’ era and I obviously didn’t look ‘heroin chic’ at all.
Cover-up: The supermodel admitted she was becoming increasingly “uncomfortable” showing her bum on the runway and asked for her bum to be covered in shows (pictured at the 2005 Victoria’s Secret show)
Gisele – who became a household name after signing as a Victoria’s Secret Angel – also admitted she was worried about how much of herself she was revealing on the catwalk while modeling for the lingerie giant.
The supermodel shared a picture of herself walking at her final Victoria’s Secret fashion show in 2005, and admitted she’d reached a point where she insisted her back was always covered because she likes it that way “uncomfortable” because her “bottom was hanging out.” On the catwalk.
“I always made sure my back was covered because I just felt uncomfortable walking on a catwalk with my bum hanging out [with people] look up [at me],’ She said.
“I thought that wasn’t going to happen. But I always enjoyed the shows, it was always a production.”
Ultimately, she chose the lingerie brand because of the massive amount of money she was offered, revealing that it was the most money she had ever made in her career.
“At that moment in 2000 you were either doing catalogs or fashion, they really didn’t mix,” she recalled while posting a picture of herself wearing a ruby-encrusted $15 million bra for the wore the brand’s famous runway show.
“It’s like you did Vogue and when you did the shows you didn’t really do catalogues. When I signed the contract with them, I remember calling my agent and saying, “What are we going to do?” because they offered me a lot of money.
“I mean, it’s more money than I’ve made in my entire career since I was 14 [and] Work. And I had to make a decision about whether I would do this contract. But at the same time, I thought that if I did this contract, maybe I would never do fashion again, because it was this thing.
“But I was, you know, 19 years old and I thought I don’t know how long I’m going to last here. I’ve been in the business since I was 14, I saw so many girls working and the next day you never saw them again.
“So I was like, you know what, they’re paying me great, they’re paying me more money than I could ever imagine. So I think I’ll say yes to that. But I have to take the risk. So I signed it and… everything worked out!’
See the full story in British Vogue’s June issue, available for digital download and on newsstands from Tuesday 24th May.
She did it: Gisele said signing with Victoria’s Secret was a “risk” but it paid off as “everything worked out” in the end