How Angelina Jolie's Kids 'Saved' Her During Brad Pitt Divorce

Angelina Jolie says her six children helped her through her difficult divorce from Brad Pitt.

"I was 26 when I became a mother. My entire life changed. Having children saved me — and taught me to be in this world differently," the Hollywood star told Vogue.

Jolie and Pitt share six kids: Maddox, 22, Pax, 19, Zahara, 18, Shiloh, 17, and twins Knox and Vivienne.

"I think, recently, I would’ve gone under in a much darker way had I not wanted to live for them. They’re better than me, because you want your children to be. Of course I’m the mother, and hopefully that safe place for them and that stability. But I’m also the one that they laugh at — and I see them taking over so many different aspects of our family," Jolie added.

Without going into detail, Jolie revealed she and her kids "had a lot of healing to do" in recent years and that they are "still finding our footing."

The Salt star also admitted to Vogue that she has been feeling "a bit down" lately.

"I’m still understanding who I am at 48. I guess I’m in transition as a person. I don’t feel like I’ve been myself for a decade, in a way, which I don’t want to get into," she explained.

Jolie and Pitt met in 2003 on the set of their 2005 action movie Mr. & Mrs. Smith. They began publicly dating a few years later. They got engaged in 2012 and tied the knot on Aug. 23, 2014.

The Hollywood power couple split in 2016, and their divorce has been nasty, including allegations that Pitt was abusive toward their children.

In 2021, Jolie reflected on her divorce while speaking with The Guardian. "I'm not the kind of person who makes decisions like the decisions I had to make lightly. It took a lot for me to be in a position where I felt I had to separate from the father of my children," she said.

Jolie added she felt "broken" by her experience, and that she wanted her family to find a way to move forward, "including their dad."