Let's hope absence makes the heart grow fonder. After nearly 13 years of marriage, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas are taking a break from their relationship, a rep for the couple confirms to Us Weekly.
"Catherine and Michael are taking some time apart to evaluate and work on their marriage," the rep tells Us.
Together since 1999, Zeta-Jones, 43, and Douglas, 68, tied the knot in New York City on Nov. 18, 2000. They have two children, Dylan, 13, and Carys, 10.
In the decade-plus since their wedding at the Plaza Hotel, the couple have weathered many storms. Three years ago, in August 2010, the Behind the Candelabra actor was diagnosed with stage IV throat cancer, for which he had to undergo chemotherapy and radiation. And a few months later, in April 2011, his wife sought treatment for bipolar II disorder.
The stress took its toll. "It puts everything into perspective on a personal and professional level. I'm not so consumed about what people think or say like I used to be," the Welsh actress told Britain's Stylist magazine last year of her family's multiple health scares. "These things are sent to try us, and we do sit back and go, 'Wow, we got through that,' and, 'Oof, we dodged that huge bullet.' I guess it does make you stronger because you have some ammunition to be prepared for something else that's going to side swipe you, because it really did side swipe us."
"It's now onwards and upwards," she added. "We're onto the next chapter of our lives. As long as we have health and happiness, nothing else matters."
