Karen Hauer took a year to "let go" of Kevin Clifton.
Karen Hauer
The 'Strictly Come Dancing' star was married to Kevin between 2015 and 2018, and admits it took her 12 months to fully come to terms with their split.
Karen said: "I would have liked to have fought for it. It took me a year after we separated to actually let go of him.
"It took me a long time to cut the umbilical cord that I had connected to him. Because it was connected for such a long time and at a completely different level than my first marriage, because this marriage was what I was always looking for."
Kevin, 38, started dating TV star Stacey Dooley in 2019, after they won 'Strictly' together the year before.
And Karen admits she "learned a huge lesson" from their split, saying that the experience has made her a "stronger" person.
Speaking on 'The Divorce Club' podcast, the 38-year-old dancer explained: "Huge lessons for me. Because of that break-up and what I had to go through emotionally, physically work wise and in the public eye - it made me stronger, and it made me realise what I really need to work on, and that was me.
"I had to work with him for two, three years after we got separated and it was hard because you can see how much love you have for one another, and the respect."
Kevin previously admitted he "didn't know how to function" amid their split.
Discussing his alcohol-fuelled lifestyle, Kevin said: "I didn't know how to deal with it. It was affecting my work, it was affecting mine and Karen's relationship. I didn't know how to function as a person."
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