It was a scary time for Real Housewives of Orange County star Tamra Judge and her husband, Eddie Judge, when Eddie’s doctor diagnosed him with an irregular heartbeat (AFib) back in 2019. Now that he has recovered from his heart problems and is feeling better, Eddie is realizing the impact his illness had on his mental health.
Five years after his initial diagnosis, Eddie took to the podcast he does with Teddi Mellencamp’s husband, Edwin Arroyave. On September 24, Eddie shared the impact his heart issue had on him.
“I am still pushing myself really hard and full circle,” Eddie shared. “You know, still, to this day, I’m trying to figure out what caused it. I’m taking clues here and there. I’m still learning the best nutrition practices, the best way to avoid these things from happening. And it has completely changed my way of looking at fitness, where I’m looking at longevity now.”
The inability to be physically active during his heart problems spiraled Eddie Judge into a depression on RHOC
Even though his heart condition is “pretty much gone” these days, Eddie admits that navigating his health journey wasn’t easy. He’s always relied on physical activity to help maintain his mental health, but having his activities restricted by his heart condition was very difficult.
At the time, Eddie and Tamra owned a gym, CUT Fitness. The personal trainer found it hard to motivate his clients to work harder while he wasn’t able to keep up. The feeling of inadequacy led him to “a little bout of depression.”
“Here is, you know, a coach and a leader in the space where I am motivating people to do things they don’t think they can do physically, right, and I can’t keep up myself,” he explained.
“Prior to that, I used to think depression is just a stupid excuse not to do anything right,” he said. “But I think I actually experienced a bout of depression because I couldn’t exercise.”
Eddie’s illness only brought him and Tamra closer together on RHOC
Even though he was in a dark place, he now thinks his depression brought him and Tamra “closer together.”
“She was really there to help me if I needed anything, anything at all — love, support, kindness, you know,” he recalled. “She was amazing. And she was struggling with it herself, too, like thinking, like, the worst-case scenario.”
Now that he’s back on the road to good health, things remain strong between Tamra and Eddie. In August, Eddie posted a tribute to his wife and all the ways she has supported him.
“I can’t imagine spending my life without you,” Eddie captioned a photo of himself and Tamra. “It’s been going strong since the first day I met you. Keep being you, baby. I love you just the way you are … [don’t] let anyone or anything change you.”
The Real Housewives of Orange County airs Thursdays at 9/8c on Bravo.
TELL US – ARE YOU HAPPY TO SEE EDDIE AND TAMRA STILL GOING STRONG AFTER ALL THESE YEARS?
