Sandra Bullock addresses 'traumatic' period after longtime partner Bryan Randall died
Sandra Bullock has opened up on the isolation she faced while caring for her long-term partner Bryan Randall before his death in 2023.
The former model and photographer passed away three years ago following a battle with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, but it was something both he and Bullock kept hidden until his death.
Now the 62-year-old actress has spoken on that 'traumatic' period for one of the first times publicly, admitting that she started grieving for Randall long before he actually passed away.
Speaking on a new episode of Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes‘ podcast SmartLess, Bullock revealed that Randall had asked her not to share his ALS diagnosis with the world.
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“I wasn’t allowed to speak about it. That was the request and I tried — I honoured it,” Bullock explained.
She added: “I know why he asked me not [to]", but suggested that 'it isolated me in the process' to carry the 'huge weight' of his diagnosis, while also dealing with the stress that the Coronavirus pandemic brought.
“I started grieving Bryan four years before he passed,” added Bullock, saying he 'was ill for half of our relationship'.
Bullock has two adopted children who she raised with Randall, while she also helps to care for one of his daughter's from a previous relationship.
But it was almost a constant battle for Bullock who effectively became her partner's carer in the final years of his life, which meant that she also didn't really have time to grieve or process what she was going through.
She went on: “My person left a lot earlier than the body left. I don’t think I ever dealt with that until after he passed, because you’re just on this treadmill, you know?”
The Miss Congeniality star also gave more of an insight into the symptoms that her long-term partner struggled with due to his ALS, describing it as a 'process of elimination over the course of a year'.
"And some where you keep going back and they give you all these milestones, these things to do, these grips, these breath tests, all these things", she added.
However, her previous experience with her father, who had 'accidents' and her mother's death at the hands of colon cancer stood her in good stead as she challenged herself to stay strong in the face of such a devastating illness.
Bullock continued: “You have to quietly plan. And I’m a very good planner with illness. It doesn’t scare me — not the illness itself, it doesn’t scare me. I can see and be around just about anything. But I had two young kids that were navigating it, especially a little girl who saw [Randall] as a father figure.
When the physical illness was then coupled with the mental health aspect of things — and it’s something that people don’t talk about… it was a trifecta that was pretty dark.”
After his death, the family wrote that he had passed away 'peacefully after a three-year battle with ALS'.
It stated: "Bryan chose early to keep his journey with ALS private and those of us who cared for him did our best to honour his request.”
An insider previously told PEOPLE. “She spent a lot of time healing, being with her kids and being at home. She needed to ensure that she and her kids were in the best possible place for her to go back to work.”
Topics: Sandra Bullock, Celebrity News, Mental Health
James Moorhouse