Life in a £3 million north London home might seem picture-perfect for Rochelle Humes, former pop star turned television presenter, and her husband, ex-JLS singer Marvin Humes.
The couple share three children: 12-year-old Alaia-May, eight-year-old Valentina, and four-year-old Blake.
But even celebrities aren’t immune to the everyday dramas of family life.
Rochelle recently revealed that their eldest daughter has been experiencing bullying at school, a reality that has deeply affected her as a mother.
The Heartache of Watching Your Child Struggle
Speaking on her Ladies Who Launch podcast, Rochelle shared the emotional toll it takes to watch Alaia-May navigate the tricky early years of secondary school. “It’s an awful thing,” she said.
“My eldest is 12 – it’s that tricky age when she’s going into the second year of secondary school and I’ve really noticed the dynamics and the changes and how girls are to each other.
I go, ‘Oh my God, if I could shield her from anything in life.’ It brings out this lioness in you.”
Rochelle admitted that while she herself wasn’t bullied growing up, parenting through her daughter’s struggles is challenging.
“It’s so difficult and so hard to watch, but also knowing how to parent through it,” she explained.
Reflecting on Early Motherhood
Rochelle also reflected on her own experiences as a young mother.
She revealed that she felt pressured and ashamed when she became pregnant at 23 while performing with The Saturdays, at the peak of the band’s success.
“I remember getting pregnant aged 23 and thinking, ‘I am pregnant and in a girlband, isn’t that against the law?’” she said.
Rochelle explained that she felt as though she had let everyone down by starting a family at that stage of her career.
Balancing Career and New Motherhood
The challenges didn’t stop once her daughter was born.
Rochelle described the exhausting early weeks of motherhood while still performing and promoting her music.
“It was almost like I had a hangover, so I couldn’t talk about it. If I felt sick, I had to hide it.
Then even coming back, I remember having a single five weeks after Alaia was born and I was on Lorraine and Good Morning Britain doing a performance.
I remember my boobs leaking and I was squeezing myself into my Spanx,” she recalled.
Looking back, Rochelle admitted she regrets not taking more time to rest and connect with her newborn.
“Now when I look back, I almost feel annoyed with myself. I didn’t really understand the impact of having a baby and what that meant for me.
I should have just let myself rest and gotten my head around the whole experience.
But I was so scared of ruining it… is that the end of my career? How does that look? So I just kept going.”
Life Beyond The Saturdays
The Saturdays, formed in 2007, disbanded in 2014, though at the time the group insisted it was a “break” rather than a breakup.
Today, Rochelle balances her busy life with family and career, sharing snippets of fun family moments and holidays on social media.
Her daughters even play a role in promoting her inclusive children’s haircare brand, My Little Coco, highlighting how her personal and professional worlds intertwine.
Parenting Lessons and Perspective
For Rochelle, experiences like her daughter’s school bullying and her early motherhood journey have reinforced the importance of protecting and supporting her children while learning to navigate life as a parent.
Despite the pressures of fame and career, she continues to share her honest reflections, offering a relatable perspective on the joys and challenges of raising a family.