For three long weeks, country singer Keith Urban gave Nicole Kidman the silent treatment -- but it wasn't because the couple was having problems.
In November, Urban underwent throat surgery to repair damaged vocal cords. The star, who is currently a coach on Australia's "The Voice," was given strict doctor's orders to rest his voice during his recovery.
In the latest issue of W Magazine, which hits newsstands in May, Kidman opens up about her husband's quiet recovery, and how it affected their marriage.
"Three weeks of no sound -- no laughing, no coughing, no sneezing, nothing," the actress told W Magazine. "He could write things down, and he would scribble away."
But while silence may drive a wedge between some couples, it did the opposite for Urban and Kidman, who have been married for six years and have two daughters together.
In fact, Kidman revealed that the silence actually strengthened their marriage. "All of those things make you closer," she said. "It was sort of profound to go without his voice, and then to finally hear his voice. What if he sounded different?"
Kidman admitted that she cried when her husband first spoke again after the surgery. "How many people experience their husband's first words?" she said. "If that doesn't bring you closer, you're not breathing."