Kim Kardashian has revealed intimate details about her troubled marriage to Kanye West, describing a chaotic relationship marked by financial instability and emotional turmoil that ultimately forced her to choose between her own mental health and staying in the union.
The SKIMS founder, 44, appeared on Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast Wednesday, where she candidly discussed what she characterized as the “toxic” elements of her relationship with the rapper. It’s the most revealing account Kardashian has offered about the marriage since their divorce was finalized in November 2022.
“I do have a problem of only remembering the good,” Kardashian admitted during the nearly two hour conversation. She explained that since her divorce, she’s developed less tolerance for dysfunction. “I think when you get older, you just don’t tolerate that. You don’t have time.”
The reality television star and businesswoman described a marriage where unpredictability became the norm. West, who revealed his bipolar disorder diagnosis in 2018, allegedly made erratic decisions that left Kardashian feeling unsafe, particularly regarding finances. She recounted coming home to discover that their five Lamborghinis had vanished.
“I would like come home, and we had like five Lamborghinis and I’d come home and they’d all be gone if he was in an episode,” Kardashian said. “And I’d be like, ‘Oh, wait. Where’s all our cars? Like, my new car?’ And it would be like, oh, he gave them away to all of his friends.”
That sense of instability, Kardashian explained, became overwhelming. “I didn’t know what you’re gonna get when you wake up, and that’s like a really unsettling feeling,” she said.
The mother of four acknowledged that friends and family likely noticed warning signs before she did. “People can say that there was, like, signs and maybe I wasn’t paying attention to them,” she reflected. She described trying to be supportive during West’s first mental health crisis, wanting to help him work through it.
But according to Kardashian, West wasn’t “willing to make changes” that she believed would have been “super healthy and beneficial” for their family. “It makes it really hard to continue on in a relationship that can be toxic,” she said. “When you have kids, it’s definitely harder to leave than it is to stay. And it changes everyone’s life forever.”
The breaking point came when multiple factors converged. Kardashian cited West’s public criticism of her mother, Kris Jenner, and her sisters as particularly difficult to witness. She admitted to feeling “dissociated” during much of the turmoil, often staying quiet while trying to process everything privately.
“It was really hard to like see my family get treated one way and then me being like, ‘I’m sorry, guys,’ and like then stick with it,” she explained. “People couldn’t not see it.”
Ultimately, Kardashian said her decision to leave centered on protecting her ability to parent their children: North, 12, Saint, 9, Chicago, 7, and Psalm, 6. She realized that maintaining her mental health wasn’t selfish but necessary.
“Once my mental health starts to get affected and then I can’t parent the way that I need to and I can’t be present and focused, then there’s gotta be one of us that can,” the reality star explained. “And I had to save myself in order to be a better mom for everyone.”
Despite the challenges, Kardashian maintains that she doesn’t view the relationship as a failure. “An over a decade relationship with four beautiful children is not a failure,” she said firmly.
The podcast appearance also addressed current co parenting dynamics, which Kardashian described as difficult. She revealed that she raises the children full time and that communication with West can be sporadic. When Cooper asked when West last saw the children, Kardashian replied that it had probably been “a couple months” since they’d heard from him.
Kardashian pushed back against claims that she prevents West from seeing their children, calling it a false narrative. “I’ve never once done that,” she stated. “I beg them to go hang out or things like that.”
She also explained why she typically doesn’t respond to West’s public statements about her on social media, even when they’re disparaging. “There has been so many times where I’ve written a draft and been like, ‘I’m going to go,’” she admitted. “And then I’m just like, ‘What’s the point? My kids are going to see this.’”
Looking forward, Kardashian shared that her eldest daughter North has been encouraging her to date again. “She just said to me like the other day, like, ‘Mom, you’ve got to get remarried. You’re getting too old and no one is gonna deal with this,’” Kardashian recounted with apparent amusement.
For now, though, Kardashian appears focused on maintaining stability for her children and protecting her own wellbeing. The interview marked the second time a Kardashian has appeared on Call Her Daddy, following sister Khloé’s episode in April.
West’s representatives have not commented on Kardashian’s statements. The rapper, 48, has previously discussed his mental health struggles publicly and has spoken about his relationship with Kardashian in interviews and through social media posts.