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Love Is Blind’s Stephen Says Medication Withdrawal Contributed to Cheating Scandal With Monica
Love Is Blind star Stephen Richardson clapped back at critics who slammed him for cheating on his ex-fiancée, Monica Davis.
Stephen, 34, shared a photo of him and Monica, 37, during their time together on Love Is Blind season 7 on Wednesday, October 9. This happened to be the same day the newest episodes of the reality show were released that featured the electrician getting busted for sending “explicit” text messages to another woman.
“And you being like ‘boohoo seems to be a recurring theme’ or ‘I don’t deserve much’ is suuuch an abusive cop out. You’re not a victim. Pretending to think you’re a disappointment because of your choices to avoid accountability while not actually growing or changing is abusive. Change. Don’t lie and manipulate. It’s really that simple,” wrote one Instagram user on Stephen’s post.
The reality star had no problem defending himself in the comments, including saying his withdrawal from the antidepressant Lexapro contributed to the way he acted.
“Hey hey heyyy this is a very good take! You should tune in to @loveisblindnetflix to see if things ended this way last year or if we learned how to communicate as rational mature adults and move forward,” Stephen replied. “It also helps now that I’m not going through Lexapro withdrawal too after like I was during this so I can better rationalize and regulate my own emotions as well. But it ain’t over till the curtains fall so let’s make sure we maintain that same energy all the way through to the reunion! I love you all.”
In another comment, Stephen clarified that he was going through “massive” Lexapro withdrawal while filming in Cabo San Lucas and Virginia during Love Is Blind season 7 which caused his “hormones and mental state” to be “completely out of whack.” Stephen also replied to another fan and explained that his withdrawal from the medicine wasn’t intentional. He explained that he packed the incorrect bottle and unexpectedly ran out in the midst of filming.
Stephen and Monica connected early on in the Love Is Blind pods, but there was trouble in paradise soon after they arrived in Cabo. At one point Monica became irritated with the way Stephen seemed to continually interrupt her while talking. He promised to work on it, but their relationship completely crumbled once they returned to their shared living space in the D.C. area.
Monica discovered sexual texts discussing “fetishes” that Stephen had sent to another woman while he claimed to have been at a sleep study. He didn’t deny the accusation and the two split up on the spot. Since then, both Monica and Stephen have addressed the incident.
“It was like a dagger to the chest in that moment. Five seconds after, Taylor was asking me, ‘What did they say?’ And I couldn’t even remember the girl’s name, but I do remember they were really very sexual. I remember one specifically said, ‘No one’s ever been able to satisfy my kinks the way you do.’ And they were just going back and forth,” Monica said during an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
Stephen, on the other hand, joked that it was “probably smart to put a password on your phone” in an interview with People.
He continued, “But in all seriousness, the main things are self-talk, self-reflection, and a lot of the things that I believe, I said it in the pods, where it’s like you don’t know if you’re fully healed until your next relationship.”
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