Melissa Suffield shared her worries about taking on ‘100% of the parenting’ of her son River on Tuesday as her fiancé Robert Brendan has started a new cruise ship job.
Taking to Instagram, the former EastEnders actress, 28, shared a sweet picture of herself with Robert and River, 14 months, which she captioned: ‘The last family photo for a while…’
Melissa explained that due to the pandemic, Robert, who usually works on cruise ships, was able to be at home for 17 months but on Tuesday he was starting a new job which will see him away for 161 days.
Candid: Melissa Suffield shared her worries about taking on ‘100% of the parenting’ of her son River on Tuesday as her fiancé Robert Brendan has started a new cruise ship job
Writing an emotional message, the actress candidly admitted that saying goodbye ‘never gets any easier’ and added: ‘It all breaks my heart a bit.’
Melissa penned: ‘The last family photo for a while… [cruise ship emoji]. As many of you know, Robert usually works on cruise ships, but due to Covid, he’s been home for 17 months- until today.
‘It never gets any easier for me to say goodbye to him, but now we have River it’s a whole new feeling.’
Sharing some of her worries about taking on ‘100% of the parenting’ as well as navigating a ‘long distance relationship’, Melissa candidly detailed her concerns.
Worries: Melissa explained that due to the pandemic, Robert, who usually works on cruise ships, was able to be at home for 17 months but on Tuesday he was starting a new job which will see him away for 161 days
Sad: Taking to Instagram, the former EastEnders actress, 28, shared a sweet picture of herself with Robert and River, 14 months, which she captioned: ‘The last family photo for a while…’
She continued: ‘How will I have enough time for nurturing a long distance relationship, and taking on 100% of the parenting at home? Will I be enough for River, and will there be enough variety to stimulate him?
‘Am I going to absolutely fall apart, or burn out? Will I miss him more, or less than I usually do? What are we going to miss out on as a family? What type of parent am I now?’
Melissa added: ‘It all breaks my heart a bit really, especially since River is too young to understand (hopefully too young to really notice) and he loves his dad so much. We *both* do.’
Signing off her post with a positive message, the actress said she was counting down the days until their reunion.
Stunning: It comes after the actress, who is a body confidence advocate, displayed her incredible curves in an inspiring post last week
Melissa sweetly penned: ‘The last year has been so tough at times, but we’ve made some excellent memories. And now it’s time to count down the days until he’s home, so we can make some more. Just 161 to go!’
It comes after the actress, who is a body confidence advocate, displayed her incredible curves in an inspiring post last week.
Melissa posed in a scarlet top and declared ‘you can wear whatever the hell you want’.
The former EastEnders star, who welcomed a son in March last year, looked radiant in a red vest paired with high-waisted jeans as she smiled.
Go girl: The star wrote an empowering message to her fans in the caption, penning: ‘This is your friendly reminder that you can wear whatever the hell you want, however the hell you want, whenever the hell you want’
Her blonde tresses were styled in waves, held back by a leopard hairband, while she added a pop of colour with red lipstick.
The star wrote an empowering message to her fans in the caption, penning: ‘This is your friendly reminder that you can wear whatever the hell you want, however the hell you want, whenever the hell you want.
‘I used to think high-waisted jeans were for flat stomachs. Wrong. That sleeveless vests were for toned arms.
‘Wrong. I don’t have either of those things right now, and am I any less valid? Do I look any less happy? Does the outfit look terrible on me? F*** no!
Self love: It comes after Melissa shared an empowering post about body confidence, where she talked about embracing her ‘fat rolls’ and post-baby body earlier this year
‘Your shape, size, gender, (or anything else for that matter) should never have a say in how you dress. Wear what makes you feel good, powerful, happy, and strong., whatever that may be.’
The actress is well known for her portrayal as Lucy Beale on EastEnders from 2004 to 2010, and she has been sharing a number of heartfelt posts about her experiences as a new mother, as well as adjusting to her changed physique.
Earlier this year, the actress shared her belief that readjusting and getting used to the changes in her body since giving birth could take a ‘mental toll’.
She told how keeping fit is ‘going to be quite a long journey’ for her. Describing her body as ‘broken’, she said she is ‘trying to be kinder to’ herself and is ‘not giving up’.
Confidence: Melissa penned: ‘I almost didn’t post this. Fat and rolls spilling over the top of the thick waistband of a pair of Robert’s pants, the dress clinging to it’
The actress shared a photo of herself in a grey crop top and black leggings as she posed on the ground alongside her son.
She wrote: ‘River there, doing the yoga that I keep saying I’ll get back into doing (swipe. He’s absolutely obsessed with doing this and some day soon the kid is going to go full roly poly).
‘Fitness is going to be quite a long journey I think. Working through understanding what used to be a dancers body, and is now comparatively, quite a broken body, is taking a physical and mental toll.
Family: The former EastEnders actress gave birth to her son River last March with her fiancé Robert (pictured during her pregnancy)
‘It’s not as simple as throwing on my trainers and having a go at couch to 5k- every step I take is measured, to make sure I never push myself so hard that it compromises my parenting, but still work hard enough to heal the parts of me that need fixing.
‘I started the @mamawelluk method last week and although I cried genuine tears at how difficult I found something that just a couple of years ago wouldn’t have even broken a sweat, I still feel positive about making a change and the programme really is excellent.
‘It’s so easy to feel defeated when my fitness was so good before, but I’m not giving up. Just trying to be kinder to myself and allow me the time I need. Baby steps.’ (sic)
Throwback: The actress is well known for her portrayal as Lucy Beale on EastEnders from 2004 to 2010 (pictured)