‘It was horrible!’ Tom Parker’s widow Kelsey admits she felt ‘guilt’ during the birth of son Bodhi as her ’emotional’ late husband battled terminal cancer
Tom and Kelsey got engaged in 2016 and married two years later in July 2018
They welcomed daughter Aurelia Rose in July 2019
The Wanted star Tom was diagnosed with cancer in October 2020 when Kelsey was 35 weeks pregnant with their second child, son Bodhi
Tom died of stage four glioblastoma brain cancer on March 30, 2022 at age 33
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Tom Parker was diagnosed with terminal cancer in October 2020 when his wife was 35 weeks pregnant with their second child.
And in a new interview, Kelsey Hardwick has admitted she “felt guilt” during the birth of son Bodhi, while her “emotional” late husband battled terminal cancer because she “wasn’t there for him” during her delivery.
Tom died on March 30, 2022 at the age of 33 from four glioblastoma brain cancers, leaving behind his wife and their two young children: Aurelia, three, and Bodhi, 21 months.
Kelsey Hardwick has admitted she felt ‘guilt’ during the birth of son Bodhi as her late husband Tom Parker struggled with terminal cancer (pictured with Bodhi in December 2020)
Kelsey opened up to Giovanna Fletcher in the latest episode of her Happy mommy, happy baby podcast which was released Tuesday.
When asked about Bodhi’s birth, Kelsey confessed, “It was terrible because Tom was so emotional, of course Tom was emotional this time for various reasons. He thought ‘How long will I be with this baby?”. Oh god, that’s pretty sad.’
“It was really hard and I remember him going to the bathroom and the nurse saying, ‘Is he okay?’” And I was like, ‘He has a brain tumor, he just got diagnosed and he’s in treatment at this time, therefore.”
“He was also very thin and he had lost his hair and this was clearly too much for him.”
Emotional times: Tom Parker was diagnosed with terminal cancer in October 2020 when his wife was 35 weeks pregnant with their second child (pictured)
When Kelsey revealed that Tom was undergoing treatment when she gave birth, and the day after she gave birth to Bodhi, the singer had to leave her and their newborn in the hospital to return to his treatment.
The mother of two continued, “I always have that guilt for Bodhi that he didn’t get the fun experience for everything, not that he’ll ever remember that…. I think one day he’ll be like ‘I’m just glad my father witnessed my birth’.
“I just felt sorry for Tom and you know what, because Tom was in this place where he definitely wasn’t Tom anymore – literally I can’t describe it.
Reflecting: Kelsey spoke about the guilt she felt during the delivery and confessed: ‘I wasn’t there for him, I wasn’t there for Tom, I couldn’t take care of him for half an hour’
“The moment he was diagnosed, I lost Tom. I felt guilty when I was in labor because I had to leave him alone for half an hour to actually give birth.”
Speaking more about the guilt she felt during labor, Kelsey explained, “I wasn’t there for him, I wasn’t there for Tom, I couldn’t take care of him for half an hour.
“And I just had this huge guilt and I’m like ‘I’m in labor with our baby, I shouldn’t feel that way, but I did” and of course I never told Tom because I wouldn’t want to that he feels that way’.
Keeping it to him: ‘Obviously I never told Tom that because I wouldn’t want him to feel that way,’ admitted Kelsey (pictured in 2021)
After the podcast aired, Giovanna shared a clip on her Instagram, revealing that they recorded the episode last week.
She added: “We both wanted this conversation to be a celebration of her life with Tom and the family they created together, while also being honest about the grief of the past two years.
“It is a deeply moving and emotional conversation about love, loss, grief, life and all its unpredictability.”
Heartbreaking: “Tom was in this place where he was definitely not Tom anymore. The moment he was diagnosed, I lost Tom,” said Kelsey (pictured in January 2021)