Last night on the Vanderpump Rules after show, nobody’s favorite narcissist, Scheana Marie, and her husband, Mike Shay, talked about how life has been since Shay’s struggle with addiction came to light.
Shay explained why he ran off to his parents’ house, and surprisingly, it wasn’t because he felt like wedding Scheana‘s eyes followed his every move, “My parents’ house is my safe zone. I’m a shy person. I’m kind of closed off. I’m not very open. At home I’m just me all the time. Sometimes you just need to get away. The city where we live is pretty tough sometimes and that’s where I like to go.” Then, while Shay was gone, Scheana let all their friends in on their secret.
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“I didn’t want him to feel judged or embarrassed or anything,” said Scheana. “I felt like, whenever he is ready to tell people, he can. But, when he wasn’t there for that week, everything was just coming out like word vomit. I’m the type of person who can’t keep things in. If something’s bothering me, you can see it on my face.”
Scheana and Shay said the at-home drug tests were Shay’s idea. Scheana tweeted, “THAT WAS 1000000% HIS IDEA. FYI. To rebuild trust with me. I would NEVER do that to him on my own.”
On the after show, Shay shared, “I was scared I was going to lose her over this. Trust is a huge thing. We just got married. I said, ‘I will do this for you to prove, not only to prove to her, but also to prove to myself.”
The hosts jokingly asked Shay if he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to stand his friends – namely Jax Taylor – without the pills. He joked, “That is the majority of why I took them.”
While she didn’t seem bothered by the banter, Scheana remained serious. “It would make him more comfortable in social settings, or at least he thought it did, but once he stopped taking the Vicodin it was like the lights went on,” she added. “Those were not making him more social, they were making him more reserved. In his mind, he was the life of the party, and I’m like, ‘No, you’re the weirdo in the corner drinking too much.’ Once he stopped taking them, I saw a whole different person, and that’s the person I fell in love with.”
The hosts asked, popping pills, bad; smoking pot, okay. “Totally. It’s California,” said Scheana. “And alcohol is acceptable in moderation. Having eight rum and cokes when we go out to a bar, that is not acceptable. Having two or three and maybe a shot, that is okay.”
As for where Scheana and Shay stand as a couple now, she shared, “I’m very thankful that this first year has been as difficult as it has been because it’s given us so much to build on. He speaks his mind a lot more, to the point where he’s almost a d–k sometimes and I’m like, ‘Whoa, buddy, you don’t have to be so mean about it.’ It’s an adjustment for me, but I like that he has that spunk and that life in him again. It catches me off guard but I think this is the strongest we’ve ever been.”
Shay said, “I’m a very go-with-the-flow person, always have been, so speaking my mind a little bit is nice, especially with her. She’s so loud. We’re so different.”
Tom Sandoval joined the show, and the hosts immediately asked why he – as well as Tom Schwartz, Ariana Madix, and Katie Maloney – welcomed Shay home knowing Shay and Scheana had a lot to talk about. “Shay actually invited me,” said Tom. “He wanted me there, me and Schwartz.”
Shay explained, “I said if Ariana and Katie were there, I would want Tom and Tom…” Scheana interrupted, “After a brief conversation of him saying that she felt intimidated by me sometimes, I was thinking if things got a little heated and I needed to step away to give him some space it would be good to have the girls there. Katie and Ariana are extremely unbiased. Then he was like, ‘Well, if they are going to be there, then I want the Toms there.'”
Tom said, “I knew there was something going on. I just didn’t know what it was. I didn’t know if it was depression, if it was some sort of affair…” Once again, Scheana interrupted, “Thank God that is not what it was.” Yes, praise the Lord, because addiction is so much better. #FacePalm
Shay shared, “It just became a part of my life, like a daily routine. People wake up, they have a cup of coffee, I would take a pill. But, at the end of the day, it really just held me back. I have no regrets. I don’t regret it at all. The only thing I regret was, not talking about it and not admitting I had a problem. I feel better than ever. I feel comfortable in my own skin, finally.”
Scheana said she’s learned that life isn’t always about her. Shay added, “She is starting to realize it’s not all about her. That has helped.”
Facing intense backlash after last night’s episode, Scheana tweeted, “Thanks for the education lesson a–holes. Clearly I have things to learn as this is all f–king NEW TO ME!!! It’s not my addiction! Bye!!!” Obviously the “not all about me” attitude is still a work in progress. To be honest, I feel Scheana deserved the backlash, as she said some truly ignorant things last night. Fingers crossed she has learned something from this experience.
TELL US – WERE YOU OFFENDED BY SCHEANA’S COMMENTS? DO YOU BELIEVE SHE’S CHANGED?
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