Southern Charm cutie Craig Conover is finally keeping it real. He has certainly been through his fair share of ups and downs. Whether Craig was a self-appointed know it all mediator between his friends, or lying pursuing his law degree, many of his trials and tribulations have been filmed for the world to see.
Fans were taken on quite a ride during his relationship with Naomie Olindo. The couple co-habitated and traveled the world during the course of their union. His lack of structure and wide-open opinions eventually took a toll and didn’t strengthen their bond. After their breakup, Craig didn’t bounce back immediately. Naomie rebounded found herself involved with a new man, and Craig found himself struggling in the aftermath.
Craig and Naomie were together for a good three years. As Craig reflected on his former love, he came to a startling conclusion. After the relationship ended, he admits he was “100 percent depressed.”. In an interview with People, Craig discussed what he went through.
“I have a whole new respect for it, because it does cripple you,” Craig confessed. “I’ve never been depressed before, and I didn’t understand it. I didn’t now how bad it was until I got on the other side.”
You might remember his dysfunctional living situation after the break-up. His home was in complete disarray. He attempted to stay busy with his sewing venture, but found himself sidelined by an injury, courtesy of a butter knife…
“You see my home on the show, and when I saw that watching it back, I was like, ‘Is this really what my house looked like?’ Because I didn’t see it. I was living in shambles and that’s how I was feeling, too. It was bad, I’m not going to lie.”
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Craig explained, “The breakup didn’t make sense to me, I just couldn’t … my brain wasn’t really able to make sense out of it.” Fortunately for Craigy, he took himself out of the Charleston environment and straight to the Bahamas.
“I knew I needed to move on, and was ready, but after 11 years [in Charleston], the dating circle gets really small. And I found myself liking people that were also friends with Naomie and it just didn’t work. I was like, ‘I got to get out of town and travel!’ ”
After descending on Bimini with Whitney Sudler-Smith, Craig began feeling like himself again. “I just felt happiness,” he says. “The energy down there was awesome. I wasn’t in a horrible spot, I just was happy for the first time in a while. I just felt healthy. And it was there that I read about depression and realized I shared basically all of the symptoms and the problems with it. It was because of the breakup and the year of you know, the tumultuous relationship that I was feeling this way.”
Craig claims the experience was “cleansing” and eventually he healed enough to head back home. “I was just like, ‘I’m good.’ And I was able to come back to Charleston with a whole fresh start. I was invigorated to be like, ‘Let’s get your s— back together,’ ” he recalled.
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While Craig is now in a good place, it can’t be easy seeing someone you love(d) move on in a new relationship. He hopes to encourage people to be open about their mental health. “I have no shame,” he says. “I don’t have a problem talking about it. … I would love to be able to help people [with my story] because I know how hard it is.”
As Cameran Eubanks weirdly flirted noted, Craig was looking much better after his return from paradise. Good on you, Craig, and welcome back. Now make us some pillows and keep on smiling!
TELL US- WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON CRAIG’S MENTAL HEALTH DISCUSSION? DO YOU THINK HE IS OVER NAOMIE? WILL HE FINALLY BE ABLE TO MOVE ON AND BE HAPPY?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
