Shania Twain, 60, has shared insights into what makes her 15-year marriage to Frederic Thiebaud thrive, emphasizing the importance of immediate and open communication to resolve issues.
Twain told People that Thiebaud excels at encouraging both partners to keep communication channels open. She described him as an exceptional communicator, unafraid to express his feelings. "He's the greatest talker, and he's not inhibited at all with expressing his feelings, which is really wonderful in a man," Twain said. "If you have a man that is really open and wants to keep the communication open, you're blessed as a woman."
In contrast, Twain mentioned her own tendency to process marital issues more privately, preferring to take time alone to reflect. However, Thiebaud's direct approach, which involves discussing and working through problems promptly, prevents issues from escalating. "Fred wants to talk about it. He wants to talk it through, and he wants to fix it," Twain stated. "And that's the best advice. I mean, he's not wrong."
This approach to conflict resolution comes after a period of significant personal upheaval for Twain. Her previous marriage to Robert 'Mutt' Lange ended due to his alleged affair with Thiebaud's then-wife, Marie-Anne, who was also Twain's friend and assistant. Twain and Lange separated for two years before their divorce was finalized in 2010. They share a son, Eja, who is now 25.
Twain and Thiebaud found solace in each other's shared experience of betrayal, with their friendship eventually blossoming into romance in 2009. They married on January 1, 2011, in Puerto Rico. Twain referred to Thiebaud as her "forever true love… the love I'm going to grow old with, and it's a beautiful feeling."
Reflecting on forgiveness, Twain has spoken about the process of letting go. "Forgiveness is in the family of letting go," she said in a May 2024 podcast episode. She clarified that forgiveness for her doesn't necessarily mean forgetting but understanding the other person's actions, even if they were wrong. "Do I hate my ex-husband for making a mistake? No. It's his mistake. Not my mistake," she added. "So sad for him that he made such a great mistake that he has to live with. And I don't know what that is, but it's not… That's not my weight."
Twain also recalled that after her divorce, she initially had no intention of remarrying. "When I got divorced, I said, 'I'm never getting married again.' I was definitely one of those people that could have written a million songs about, 'I'm never going to fall in love again.' But Fred was such an undeniable love." She acknowledged that they both carried "deep scars in common. We were a big part of each other's healing."