The Real Housewives of Atlanta aired the 18th episode of the 7th season last night (March 22, 2015).
Last week, the ladies all got together for a therapy session with Dr. Jeff, and Nene Leakes stormed out after feeling attacked.
[FLASHBACK: RECAP: RHOA S7, EP17 – ‘Fix It Therapy’ + Watch Full Episode]
This week, the ‘therapy’ continues…. albeit without Mrs. Leakes, and miraculously the ladies all admit they have issues that have nothing to do with her.
Bravo synopsis:
Dr. Jeff leads the women to a breakthrough. NeNe struggles with studying for her Broadway debut. Kenya’s cast reads her script for the first time. Phaedra meets with an attorney to figure out next steps in her life. Claudia decides to continue ushering the girls towards better friendships.
Recap + watch full episode below…
VIDEO: RHOA 0718
Life Lesson #1 – Everyone has their own baggage…
Dr. Jeff tries to get Nene to return to the therapy session, but fails. It seems that Nene felt that the therapist is ‘choosing sides’ and everyone is attacking her. Upon leaving… Nene states, ‘Your problem is solved… Bye-Bye!’
Porsha Williams tries to speak up for her friend in her absence, but the ladies aren’t buying it.
Whatever the case, it’s Williams who explodes and calls out everyone’s fake behavior and her tantrum sparks a few revelations that Nene had nothing to do with how they were battling each other.
Dr. Jeff tells the ladies that if they can’t admit the baggage carried into a relationship then they don’t have any power over it.
Porsha reveals that she was bullied in high school and contemplated suicide. She also reveals that she felt bullied in her marriage.
Claudia reveals that she was bullied about being bi-racial and that her mom was called ‘n*gga lover’ as she was growing up.
Kenya reveals how she was rejected by her mom growing up and she still is, to this day.
Porsha and Kenya rehash their battles. Beginning with the day they first met and Porsha screwed up her title. Their relationship only went down from there.
Williams also notes how she accepted Kenya’s apology after the reunion and thought they were somewhat cool, but then both Kenya and Claudia attack her in Puerto Rico about dating a married man.
Claudia attempts to make amends about her ‘thirsty’ behavior in Puerto Rico and apologizes stating she wants to be friends.
[Sidebar: Claudia was merely securing her peach in Puerto Rico and she did what she had to do to get it. Arguing with Porsha and Nene was her ticket in and she knows it, but now she wants to backtrack and be ‘friends’… girl bye! But I digress…]
The session ended with the ladies agreeing to work on their issues. They decide to send a group video to Nene letting her know that they moved on in therapy without her.
Kandi films the video, but is quite vocal about how she felt everyone was kissing Nene’s ass.
Moving on…
Life Lesson #2 – One apology should be enough… but sometimes it’s not.
Nene Leakes has left the building! While her cast mates work it out in therapy, Leakes chills at home with her Cinderella script and confides in her hubby Gregg how she felt attacked during the session.
Nene says she has apologized to EVERYONE but it seems that the ladies all want her to apologize every day about every thing! How many times should she have to say ‘I’m sorry’…
I’m in a really good place professionally and I would rather my friendships be that way… but with this group of ladies? It ain’t gonna happen.
Greg advises his wife that she has no power about how people accept her apologies and that if they are having issues… she should move on.
Life Lesson #3 – When all else fails, commiserate with another fallen christian…
Phaedra Parks is slowing getting her life in order but has decided to steer clear from the other cast members this week.
Parks invites friend and fellow “PK” (Preacher’s Kid), Sarah Jakes, over and the two share tales of disgrace and public embarrassment.
Jakes, the 26 year old daughter of mega preacher TD Jakes, was once what she calls ‘the black sheep of America’s favorite preacher’ when she got pregnant at 13 years old.
She went on to get married but soon divorced after feeling she was in a stressful, loveless marriage.
Coincidentally, Phaedra faced the same scrutiny when she married ex-convict, Apollo Nida shortly after becoming pregnant and she shared her feelings with Jakes about how hard it was prior to Apollo turning himself in to serve his 18 year prison term.
Parks admits that she’s now somewhat at peace knowing that her husband is safe in jail instead of wilding out on the streets of Atlanta.
Life Lesson #4 – If everyone tells you your friendship is askew… maybe it’s askew…
Kandi and Todd get together for date night with Cynthia and Peter. The two couples rehash the events of therapy session and it seems that Kandi still can’t accept the fact that there are issues in her friendship with Phaedra.
Burruss reveals that even Dr. Jeff brought up the fact that she has things to resolve with her former BFF and she’s feeling ‘somekindaway’ about everyone discussing her issues without her.
Kandi still isn’t feeling Nene’s hasty exit and she’s quite vocal about Leakes and Phaedra’s budding friendship.
Phaedra is clearly talking to them.
What is she saying to these people to make them think we have such deep rooted issues?
I thought that they answered this question already. Didn’t Kandi and Phaedra discuss this in her law office?? Kandi’s short term memory sucks because Parks told her flat out that she felt that Burruss wasn’t there for her during her struggles with Apollo.
Whatever… moving on.
Life Lesson #5 – Talking about divorce is not the same as divorcing…
Phaedra Meets with her attorney friend, Ronne Kaplan, to discuss divorce from Apollo. Apollo has threatened divorce and she wants to make sure she’s legally protected.
Not only is he leaving me, but he’s leaving a trail of marriage behind him that I have to clean up.
Attorney Kaplan has reviewed her prenup and determined that it’s iron clad. She also has questions about why a successful attorney would choose to marry an ex-con fresh out of prison.
[FLASHBACK: Off The Market: Phaedra Parks Ties the Knot… (PHOTOS)]
The questions prompts Phaedra, through a series of RHOA flashbacks, to reveal how she thought Apollo was a changed man and how in the beginning of their marriage, he was a loving, doting husband and father.
What a difference a few years on a reality show can make! Parks notes how Apollo went from ‘superdad’ to king of the strip clubs and how his behavior affected her and their sons.
Phaedra’s attorney also gives her a bit of parenting advice, telling her that the boys need their father and should visit him on a regular basis.
While Parks somewhat agrees with her, she’s still hesitant about exposing her sons into ‘a room full of killers’ just because Apollo chose a life of crime.
She’s still on the fence about taking the kids for visitation, but it seems she’s not totally against it.
Kaplan also notes that the parenting plan is more important that the divorce right now and advises Parks to take things so for the sake of the kids.