“We probably had two or three breakups” - Michael Phelps’ wife Nicole spills beans on getting back with Olympian over the course of 8 years of dating

Michael Phelps' wife, Nicole Phelps, revealed that she and the swimmer broke up two or three times but found their way back to each other as they navigated through their eight-year-long relationship. She also talked about visiting Phelps at the treatment center after their third breakup, when she finally learned to let go of past traumas and build a solid relationship with him.

The Phelps couple met at the 2007 ESPY Awards when Nicole was a model, en route to the 2010 Miss California, while the Olympian came fresh from his success at the 2004 Summer Games. They dated for eight long years and got engaged in February 2015.

In a recent interview with Tim Shriver, Phelps' wife shared that the couple broke up two or three times in their dating phase but always found their way back to each other. She noted that going their separate ways and healing wasn't easy, but when Phelps' was admitted to the rehabilitation center for depression in 2014, Nicole learned to let go of the pains of the breakups and look forward to a good relationship.

"We probably had two or three breakups. It wasn't easy to break up and go our separate ways. But something always led us back together. On the third breakup, we were testing the waters of getting back together, and Michael ended up in a treatment center," she said. (Maria Shriver's Sunday Paper)

She further highlighted the importance of letting go:

".....I truly learned to heal and learned reconciliation. Because prior to that, I held onto the past—to the hurts and the pains that the other person puts you through. That’s not the way that you move forward and forge a really good relationship. You have to let some things go sometimes."

Michael Phelps and his then-girlfriend Nicole Johnson married in June 2016 and hosted a social ceremony in Cbo San Lucas in October of that year.

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Michael Phelps' wife Nicole once shared how the couple works towards letting things go

Michael Phelps and Nicole Phelps at the 148th Kentucky Derby - Barnstable Brown Gala - Source: Getty

Michael Phelps recalled the moment he ingested more doses of Ambien and unexpectedly woke up the next morning. The 39-year-old recognized the importance of vocalizing his issues and reaching out for help.

In conversation with Tim Shriver, Nicole reflected on the Olympian addressing his vulnerability and how letting things go has also helped the couple live a better life.

"I think the vulnerability that Michael's talking about is being able to walk over to somebody and say, Hey, I'm going to be vulnerable with you right now. This is what I'm feeling. This is what I experienced. And I need you to hear it."

She continued:

"I think that's what a lot of Michael and my work together has been. Learning to let go of things that happened in the past to allow us a happier, a better, an easier. future."

The Phelps couple share four sons, Boomer, Beckett, Maverick, and the five-month-old Nico.