'With hearts full of sadness,' Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin separate
(Yahoo! Celebrity) - After 10 years of marriage, Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin announced their separation on Tuesday.
In a post on Gwyneth's website Goop titled "Conscious Uncoupling," the 41-year-old actress states: "It is with hearts full of sadness that we have decided to separate.
"We have been working hard for well over a year, some of it together, some of it separated, to see what might have been possible between us, and we have come to the conclusion that while we love each other very much we will remain separate," Paltrow writes. "We are, however, and always will be a family, and in many ways we are closer than we have ever been.
"We are parents first and foremost, to two incredibly wonderful children and we ask for their and our space and privacy to be respected at this difficult time," continues the Oscar winner.
"We have always conducted our relationship privately, and we hope that as we consciously uncouple and coparent, we will be able to continue in the same manner," concludes the announcement, signed, "Love, Gwyneth & Chris."
Paltrow and Martin, 37, have two children together: daughter Apple, 9, and son Moses, 7.
Following Paltrow's announcement on Goop — which crashed the website — the actress posted a piece by Dr. Habib Sadeghi and Dr. Sherry Sami on the meaning of "Conscious Uncoupling."
"Divorce is a traumatic and difficult decision for all parties involved — and there’s arguably no salve besides time to take that pain away," the article begins. "However, when the whole concept of marriage and divorce is reexamined, there’s actually something far more powerful — and positive — at play."
Paltrow has been notoriously candid about the difficulty of marriage.
"It's hard being married," Paltrow told Glamour U.K. for the June 2013 issue. "You go through great times, you go through terrible times. We're the same as any couple."
"I asked my dad once, 'How did you and Mum stay married for 33 years?' And he said, 'Well, we never wanted to get divorced at the same time,'" the "Iron Man 3" star continued. "And I think that’s what happens. When two people throw in the towel at the same time, then you break up, but if one person’s saying: 'Come on, we can do this,' you carry on."
For much of the past year, Paltrow had been battling with Vanity Fair over an alleged hit piece, which reportedly claimed she had an extramarital fling with Miami billionaire Jeff Soffer. Her camp denied the story, which was ultimately killed by the magazine's editor, Graydon Carter.
Gwyneth and the Coldplay rocker secretly tied the knot at San Ysidro Ranch in Santa Barbara, California, on Dec. 5, 2003.
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