Eden Harel and Oded Menashe on family struggles: "Why are you doing this?"
The well-known couple often shares intimate moments from their lives. Beyond the humor and joy, they are not afraid to discuss the less glamorous aspects of their relationship, as seen in a recent Friday evening incident.
Eden Harel and Oded Menashe are undoubtedly one of the most stable and beloved couples in the Israeli entertainment industry. They regularly share their lifestyle and personal moments from their marriage and family life with their followers, but this time, Harel decided to take her transparency a step further.
In her podcast, "Dibburim mi-Gan Eden" (Talks from Paradise), she offered a glimpse behind the scenes of her relationship with TV presenter Oded Menashe. Harel shared poignant reflections on moments of collapse at home, the pressure to be a perfect mother, and how her husband reacts when everything falls apart.
Harel recounted a moment from a recent Friday while preparing for Shabbat. She had been attempting to prepare over 20 types of salads, pastries, and delicacies on her own. When her husband entered the kitchen and offered to help, she replied in a sharp tone: "No need, everything is fine, I'll knock this out in 10 minutes, everything is good."
Shortly after, a pot of soup spilled on the floor, causing her to break down completely. She sat on the floor and began to weep in despair:
"Oded entered the kitchen and saw me... looking at me with the kindest eyes there are. He simply said to me quietly: 'Why, why are you doing this to yourself? Why don't you ask for help? We are here, we are with you. Why do you have to do everything alone? Why this heroism, this strength?'"
"My refusal to accept help did not come from strength—not at all," she explained on the podcast. "It came from ego and fear. I was afraid that if I said, 'I'm not managing, I need help,' it would mean I'm not good enough, that I failed as a mother, that I failed as a woman."
Harel explained that in the past, she tried to project an image of a "robot-woman" and superwoman to her children, but later realized the damage in that. "When I allow myself to break in front of them, to cry when I'm in pain or when something doesn't work out, I am actually giving them the greatest gift there is—I am giving them permission to be human," she noted.
