In the first interview since the death of her son Emilio, Simone Mecky-Ballack talks about her grief and her struggle to return to life.
In August 2021, Simone Mecky-Ballack (46) lost her son Emilio. The middle of her three sons died in an accident in Portugal at the age of 18. Now the ex-wife of football legend Michael Ballack (45) has given her first interview about her grieving work in the magazine “Bunte” since the severe stroke of fate.
Mecky-Ballack recalls that after she received the news of the accident, she would have spent the first few days in a trance. Despite her fear of flying, she cannot remember the flight to Portugal. In Portugal she was able to see her dead boy again: “I was able to say goodbye to him, stroke his cheek one last time. Then I knew for sure: his soul is gone.”
“I still feel his energy”
Since then, the pain has come in waves and will always remain, she is sure. “Sometimes I think he’s just around the corner. I can still feel his energy.” Her two sons, Louis and Jordi, are the reason her life goes on. “But it still takes a lot of energy for me to live on every day, to be there for them both.”
There are days when “I allow myself to mourn, cry snot and water – that’s healing.” She also spends a lot of time in Emilio’s room, which still looks exactly as it did when he left. “I just look at his photos all day long. Lay on his bed and feel very close to him. But then I get up again!”
In the interview, the grieving mother is also combative. Mecky-Ballack says she didn’t start any therapy after her son’s death. Instead, she turned to her friends and worked a lot: “You have to regulate your everyday life in such a way that you don’t fall back into this deep sadness.”
Encourage other parents
With the interview, she wanted to “encourage other parents that life goes on.” On Instagram, she had been approached for showing herself smiling again. On the other hand, she defends herself: “Don’t let yourself be dictated to how you live your grief. Go out, live your life and have fun! We have a responsibility to other children, family and friends. We don’t want to end our lives. And yes: God be Thanks, I can laugh again now and then, I can feel joy.”
