Braunwyn Windham-Burke Reveals How Her Sobriety Caused Drama On RHOC
PHOTO: Bravo
Who knew a sober Housewife could cause even more drama than a drunk one?
During the season premiere of The Real Housewives of Orange County last Wednesday, Braunywn Windham-Burke admitted to being an alcoholic in a shocking moment at the end of the episode, however, it turns out her struggles with sobriety caused even more shocking moments on the upcoming season.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Braunwyn revealed she quit drinking on January 30 only one day before she was set to sit down with producers to discuss what was going on in her life ahead of season 15. The reality star explained she didn't make the decision to commit to being sober until after she spoke to fellow sober bravolebrity Captain Sandy Yawn. I love a crossover. Brown Wind confessed:
“[I] knew things were out of control. I knew my life had become unmanageable. Then I called Captain Sandy from Below Deck Mediterranean because I knew she’d been sober for 30 years. I got her advice and she said, ‘You had no problem being drunk on camera. Why are you having such a hard time getting sober on camera?’ And I had to admit the truth was because then I would be accountable and that was scary.”
Following her chat with Sandy, Braunwyn says she called the producers and told them she was an alcoholic. Although her revelation may have come as a surprise during the premiere episode, the mother of seven revealed she's been struggling with alcoholism for quite some time and even went to rehab for it ten years ago, which she admitted to the producer over the phone, she explained:
“I said, ‘I’ve struggled with this for many years, this is not my first time trying to get sober. I went to rehab 10 years ago, this is not new. This is just something I didn’t tell you guys, this is something that I kept to myself thinking I could keep it under control,' and he said, ‘OK, do you want to film this?’ I said, ‘I do, and I want to do it right. I want to do it honestly, and I don’t want to sugarcoat it.’ He’s like, ‘OK, we’re in.'”
There's no doubt Braunwyn opening about her sobriety will help so many people across the world watching the show. Admitting you're an alcoholic on an international reality show is scary because the cameras will keep you accountable and if you slip up, you won't be able to get away with it, so Braunwyn going into this season ready to speak about her addiction is so fucking brave.
Braunwyn then hinted at how some of this season's most explosive drama stemmed from her struggling with her sobriety. When she was 30 days sober, the OC Housewife explained she hit rock bottom and hadn't began seeking help yet, which caused her to have a glass throwing meltdown, she stated:
“You see a crazy scene on camera where I throw a glass and all that. That was my rock bottom, that was 30 days sober. I hadn’t gone to get any help yet, I thought I could do it on my own, and you see that day the progression. I tried to kick the cameras out of the house, I really tried, and they followed me that whole day. That day in retrospect, [when I threw the glass], I should not have gone, in the state I was, to a party where everyone was tequila-tasting.”
This episode seems like it's gonna be good because Braunwyn not only tried to kick the cameras out of her house but she also had a fight with Gina Kirschenheiter, who kept telling her to drink, as she was unaware Braunwyn was trying to stay sober at the time. That's apparently when she threw her glass and stormed off, she revealed:
"I had an altercation with [Gina] at the time, because here I am trying not to drink and they say, ‘Go to the bar, go have another drink, go have another f**king drink, that’s what you always do,’ but that sent me over the edge. When I’d been trying so hard to stay sober and keep it together. Those words. That’s when I threw the drink and said, ‘F you.'"
If you watch the season 15 trailer real close, you'd notice that most of the drama is when Braunwyn is wearing a pink snake skin dress, so I'm guessing the majority of this season's drama happened on her 30 day anniversary of being sober.
Following her meltdown, Braunwyn said she began attending meetings and by the time she said "I'm Braunwyn and I'm an alcoholic" in her confessional, she had already admitted it to herself in private. Braunwyn also recently took to Instagram to share she was 258 days sober which is amazing. Honestly, I am impressed by anyone who has managed to stay sober during this pandemic.
Oh, and Braunwyn also admitted she and her husband are no longer living in the same house but are still together. I guess they really are trying this modern marriage thing...
Thoughts? Sound off in the comments!
