A Journey of Healing and New Beginnings
Olivia Molly Rogers, a 34-year-old content creator and former Miss Universe Australia, has always been open about her life. From battling an eating disorder to navigating the challenges of modelling, she has shared many personal experiences with her audience. Her journey has not been without its struggles, including a difficult marriage breakdown, fertility issues, and starting over in her 30s. Yet, despite these challenges, Rogers’ story is one of hope and transformation.
Now, she finds herself in a much better place. She has found love again, moved into a new home, and is expecting a baby boy due around Mother’s Day. This fairytale ending was hard-earned, especially after the pain of her first marriage ending in divorce after just seven months in 2022. At that time, Rogers struggled to see a happy future for herself. “I’d seen a lot of people around me end up with really good matches in couples, and I thought, ‘Oh, that’s so nice for them … but I don’t think that will ever be me,’” she recalls.
As a self-described “serial monogamist,” Rogers felt pressure to live her best post-divorce single life while being constantly scrutinized by the media. However, in late 2023, she met Hugo Breakey, a management consultant, at a South Yarra nightspot. At first, he believed she was just a speech pathologist, her previous career before becoming a full-time influencer. Rogers was the first to text him after their meeting, feeling there was something special about him. A coffee date followed, and she told her mum that Breakey was the one.
Despite the pressure to remain single, Rogers found healing in her relationship with Breakey. “Hugo has been so healing for me,” she says. “When I met him, he was so kind to me and showed up for me in ways that I hadn’t experienced before, that I actually believed that I was worthy of that.”
Advocacy and Awareness
Rogers has long been passionate about causes that impact women. Since winning Miss Universe Australia in 2017, she has used her platform to raise awareness about important issues. One such cause is the Witchery White Shirt Campaign, which supports the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation. As an ambassador for this campaign, Rogers helps raise funds for the development of an early detection test for ovarian cancer, a disease that claims about 1000 lives each year in Australia.
She shares stories from women who have faced this silent cancer, often too late to make a difference. “Often by the time they find out that they’ve got it, it’s too late,” she says. For Rogers, her involvement feels even more poignant as she approaches motherhood. “I’ve met young women who’ve had to have hysterectomies when they’re so young,” she says. “To go through that awful, traumatic thing [cancer], then also have the opportunity of becoming a mum basically stripped away from them makes me feel so sad.”
Navigating Fertility and Public Life
Rogers has also faced her own fertility challenges. She lives with a health condition called polyposis and underwent assisted reproductive treatment during her first marriage. After her divorce, she froze her eggs. Sharing her personal battles publicly, such as editing her wedding video to remove her ex-husband, made announcing her pregnancy last November, when she was 14 weeks pregnant, particularly daunting.
“I know how hard it is when you go through infertility, and … every baby announcement can feel like a kick in the guts,” she says. Despite this, she found support from friends like Michelle Andrews, co-founder of Shameless Media, who reassured her that she didn’t need to apologize for sharing good news. “I don’t think men ever have to do that,” Rogers adds, raising her perfectly groomed eyebrows.
Embracing Parenthood and Public Scrutiny
Despite taking care in how she shared her pregnancy news, Rogers still faced criticism. Some accused her of “flaunting” her pregnancy or making fans feel like they were betrayed. However, she believes becoming a first-time parent in her 30s has helped her deal with the constant opinions and occasional criticism.
“If you only share [on social media] what you think is going to resonate well with everyone, you won’t share anything,” she says. “I’m just sharing my life, and hoping that it helps those who it resonates with. If people need to unfollow me to protect their own mental health, that’s fine.”
A Legacy of Resilience
Rogers’ journey has not been easy. She battled an eating disorder after being scouted at 17 and used her Miss Universe Australia title to highlight the toxic side of the modelling industry. In her 2021 book, Find Your Light, she explored these topics further. She also found the recent documentary about America’s Next Top Model difficult to watch, as it reminded her of the negative impact such shows had on vulnerable teenage girls.
One particularly painful memory was when, at 19, she was told she needed to lose weight to secure work in Japan. She lost the weight but still missed out on the contract. “I was very, very skinny, and I couldn’t just snap my fingers and go back to what I was. It was too late.”
However, the Miss Universe competition ultimately helped her on her path to recovery. Now, as she navigates pregnancy, she admits some of the body changes have been triggering. “Much better than I expected,” she says. “I found it harder in the first trimester and into the second, when your bump’s not really a bump, and it kind of just feels like you’re bloated or you’ve gained a bit of weight.”
Balancing Life and Expectations
Despite the challenges, Rogers remains focused on her upcoming role as a mother. She has a packed schedule, including physio appointments, a trip to Sydney for her Sunday Life cover shoot, hosting family members, and a Queensland babymoon with Breakey. While some might say this is good practice for parenthood, Rogers is also dealing with intense nausea, which plagued her until 20 weeks and has returned in her third trimester.
Sipping her decaf coffee, she reflects on the journey that brought her to this point. “All the time I’m just thinking about women who already have kids and then they go through pregnancy again with a toddler,” she says. “Women are just superheroes.”
