Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Denise Richards is opening up about parenthood.
During an interview with People magazine from February 2019, the reality star and actress
spoke candidly about her 7-year-old daughter Eloise's developmental delays due to a rare
chromosomal disorder.
According to Richards, her daughter is facing both physical and mental difficulties due
to the condition, but the proud mother is taking the challenges on with her, one day
at a time.
Richards broke down some of the medical issues to the publication, explaining that Eloise
was unable to sit up on her own for some time and didn't start walking until she was 2 years
old, with the help of physical therapy.
Regarding her mental and emotional development, Richards said that her daughter can only say
a limited number of words and sometimes behaves much younger, emotionally, than other children
her age.
The Starship Troopers actress explained her youngest child's symptoms come from a condition
called deletion in chromosome 8, which she was diagnosed with in 2016.
According to medical experts, the chromosomal condition is a rare one, with symptoms that
can vary widely from person to person.
But in general, the condition is most commonly associated with mild mental deficiencies and
stunted physical growth.
"It was something that I didn't even know existed that we learned about her, and she's
doing really well."
Richards has admitted that raising a child with special needs comes with its own set
of unique challenges.
The actress said, quote, "I'm learning every day because they don't really have a road
map for her particular case."
But any difficulties she may have in raising her child have no effect on how much she cares
about her.
As she put it,
According to Us Weekly, Richards adopted little Eloise in 2011.
She shared her joy over the adoption with the magazine at the time, saying, quote, "She's
brought so much joy, and I love her to pieces.
She is a cuddle bug.
She loves being hugged and held.
She's such a beautiful little baby and little soul."
While opening up about the process of adopting a child, the actress-turned-TV-personality
dispelled some myths about parenting as a celebrity.
As she put it,
The 47-year-old Richards is also the mother of two other daughters, 14-year-old Sam and
13-year-old Lola, whom she had with ex-husband Charlie Sheen.
The one-time couple officially split up in 2006 after four years of marriage.
To the public, their divorce played out in an ugly way, involving a highly-publicized
child support battle, and ending up in what has reportedly been a sometimes difficult
co-parenting relationship.
Despite these hardships, the duo fortunately appeared to be on much better terms with each
other by 2017.
Richards gave her fans a look into her family situation with an Instagram post that January,
captioning a sweet family dinner snapshot of her three kids and her famous ex sitting
around the table.
She captioned the post,
For the most part, the mother-of-three has attempted to keep her personal life under
wraps, which can be difficult when you're a new cast member on a high-profile reality
show.
Behind the scenes, she's focusing her time and energy on being a mom.
As Richards told People,
On top of being a parent and a new member of the Real Housewives, Richards also started
off 2019 as a newlywed, having tied the knot with actor Aaron Phypers.
The two lovebirds celebrated their marriage with an intimate ceremony in Malibu, California
in September 2018, with the nuptials, and all the drama surrounding them, being filmed
for her reality show's ninth season.
As Richards told The Daily Dish at the time of the wedding,
Whether she's on-screen mixing it up with her fellow housewives or at home taking care
of her children, 2019 is shaping up to be a big year for Denise Richards.
No matter how things turn out for her, we'll be here to tell you all about it.
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