Kim Kardashian Recalls 'Toxic' Marriage to Kanye West, Shares What Ultimately Led to Split

On Wednesday's new episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, The Kardashians star opened up about her "toxic" marriage to the rapper, and revealed what she believed was the "final straw" in their relationship.

Kim, 44, and Kanye, 48, split in 2021 after nearly seven years of marriage, and over a decade together. The former couple's divorce was finalized the following year. The two share four children: North, 12, Saint, 9, Chicago, 7, and Psalm, 6.

When host Alex Cooper asked Kim what were the "early signs" that her relationship with Kanye was "changing," the SKIMS founder replied, "People can say that there was, like, signs and maybe I didn't-- wasn't paying attention to them."

"And I think when someone has their first, like, mental break, you know, you wanna be super supportive and you wanna, help figure that out and you wanna really get into that with them and be there for them," Kim said of Kanye, who was previously diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2016. (Earlier this year, he rejected his past diagnosis, and claimed he's autistic, not bipolar.)

"When someone isn't willing to make changes that I think would be super healthy and beneficial in a relationship, it makes it really hard to continue on in a relationship that can be toxic," she continued. "When you have kids, it's definitely harder to leave than it is to stay. And it changes everyone's life ... forever."

The mom of four added, "Once you get to a place where you feel like it's not going to change or get better, then you have to make some serious choices on what you're gonna do, and that's a really hard reality to face."

Kim went on to note that she had to put her children first.

"Once my mental health starts to get affected, and then I can't parent the way that I need to, and I can't be present and focused, then there's gotta be one of us that can," she said. "And I had to save myself in order to be a better mom for everyone. And I think, like, when everyone's older, they'll be able to understand it and see that all." 

After the reality star continued to recall how her marriage was impacting her and her family, she revealed what was the "final straw" in her relationship with Kanye.

"What was it for you that was the final straw that actually got you to be like [I'm done]?" Cooper asked Kim, who brought up how her ex would publicly badmouth her family.

"There was just a lot of things that I wouldn't deal with," she recalled. "I didn't like the feeling of someone talking bad about my kids, grandmother, aunts -- all of those feelings. If someone feels that way, then we shouldn't be together, maybe airing out ... a lot of personal stuff."

Kim added that she did not feel "safe" in more ways than one.

"Just not feeling safe, you know, not even physically, just like maybe emotionally or even, you know, financially," she said, before then using an alleged example. "I would come home, and we had like five Lamborghinis, and I'd come home and they'd all be gone if he was in an episode. And I'd be like, 'Oh, wait. Where's all our cars? Like, my new car?' And it would be like, oh, he gave them away to all of his friends."

Kim claimed that it happened again, to which she said she reacted by saying, "Keep them, guys."

"I didn't know what you're gonna get when you wake up, and that's like a really unsettling feeling," she added of Kanye. "Lack of stability was a big thing."

When asked about the "biggest change" she found "within herself" after she decided to call it quits with Kanye, Kim admitted that she had concerns about her place in fashion and art due to Kanye's presence in the industry.

"I walked away thinking that I would have to live a different life, that I would not have a connection to anyone in the fashion, or art, that was a big part of his life," Kim explained, adding that she felt that her "happiness" was still "worth" that possible sacrifice.

Fortunately, the All's Fair actress said the opposite ultimately happened.

"Some of my biggest projects came about after I made that decision," Kim explained. "Some of my best relationships with fashion and art and all of these things I thought I had to give up -- or told I wasn't going to have anymore -- it was the universe rewarding me and showing me that I was moving in the right direction. And I think that's a really important, powerful thing to pay attention to the signs and pay attention to life and what happens and how you can be guided to make really good decisions, but I have no regrets."

"I have four amazing, beautiful babies," she added.

Elsewhere in the conversation, Kim opened up about the "state" of her co-parenting relationship with Kanye.

"What do you think co-parenting with Kanye West is like?" she quipped, before adding, "It's not easy, but I mean, I raise the kids full-time. They live with me."

"I welcome a great, healthy relationship with my kids and their dad," Kim continued, saying that her ex knows this and she "push[es]" for that relationship "all the time."

"But I also protect them when it's time for that," she said, "and it goes in waves and phases and it's a lot of work."

She noted that she has the "best memories" of her late father, Robert Kardashian, before giving a shoutout to her sister Khloé Kardashian's ex, Tristan Thompson, saying that he "puts their kids to bed every night and takes them to school" in the off-season. (Khloé and Tristan share daughter True, 7, and son Tatum, 3.)

When Cooper asked Kim the "last time" Kanye saw their kids, she replied, "Hmm ... Whenever he'll call for them and ask. It's probably been a couple months since we've heard from him."