'I'm not a robot... I'm not made of stone': Heidi Klum breaks silence on painful split from Seal

Seal broke his silence about their shocking break-up right after it was announced, but until now, Heidi Klum has remained silent. 

The German model has finally opened up about the demise of her marriage in the April issue of Elle magazine. 

The 38-year-old supermodel has likened the split to a tornado - and admits to being in a vulnerable place, saying: 'I'm not made of stone.'

She says: 'I feel like I'm in the eye of the tornado. It's emotions inside of your body that are a tornado. And then the outside world doing all this craziness - with you wanting it or not wanting it - is another tornado.

'But as hard as it is, so is life. And sometimes I think a curve-ball just comes at you. Instead of something straight that you catch, it hits you in the head from the side that you didn't expect."

She admits that, though it appeared they had an idyllic, fairytale romance, their seven-year marriage was rife with problems that they tried to keep private.

The Project Runway host says: To the outside world, you don't really share all the things that happen. You kind of share just the most amazing sides. 

'But I don't really want to get into any of that stuff. With my life, my family, my business - I want to go forward.

'I feel like already there are so many things being said about us - about him, about me. I'm not going to comment.

Otherwise it makes you angry. You can't always call and say, 'This is not true, but this part is true.'

Seal, 49, has been airing the couple's dirty laundry non-stop while promoting his latest album, and though Heidi refuses to admit she's angry, she does acknowledge that the situation is tough. 

She says: 'He's a grown man. I can't tell him what to do and what not to do. It's hard.

'People don't need to know who did what. I don't want to talk positively or negatively about the ups and downs that we had. 

'Every couple goes through things. Unfortunately, we're in the public, so the highs are out there.' 

The former couple have four children together, and she wants to protect them. 

She says: 'I'm a lioness. I have four cubs. I'm a mom. I want to take care of my kids and protect them. I don't want to talk about them, or him, or me.' 

The model adds that the separation has caused her endless amounts of pain, saying: 'I'm not a robot. I'm not made of stone.' 

The couple announced their split in late January after seven years of marriage. 

The Kiss From A Rose singer spoke out two days after announcing the split. 

He said: 'I think we were shocked. You go into these things with the greatest intentions when you say 'I do' and you say 'Til death do us part.

'Those vows hold value. They are not just words. 

'These things happen. The thing that I'm most proud about is this great women who I married - and I really do mean that from the bottom of my heart - is that together she has given me four incredible gifts, four beautiful children.'