Tamra Judge Describes Friendship With Shannon Beador As “Exhausting”

It’s been a LONG time since Tamra Judge and Shannon Beador have been at odds. Nevertheless, the tension between the besties has been building up all season Real Housewives of Orange County. Shannon is going through a lot, but Tamra feels like Shannon is all about her own life and her own problems.

It all came to a head during the last episode when Tamra did not stand up for Shannon after Gina Kirschenheiter asked if Shannon was a good friend. Tamra didn’t say a word, Shannon stormed off, and she went off on pretty much every cast member.

Tamra shared her thoughts on the Shannon drama in a Bravo blog post. She confessed, “The constant negativity was driving me crazy. I was at my breaking point with Shannon. I love my friend dearly, but it wasn’t OK for her to act this way anymore.” The viewers concur.

Tamra called her out: “Saying you have too much on your plate to acknowledge somebody on vacation makes no sense.” Not only that, but if she doesn’t want to acknowledge Emily Simpson or Gina, then why is she a cast member on this show. It is essentially required that she has to acknowledge all of the cast members. This is a job, after all.

Tamra revealed, “Here’s the thing: It’s really hard for me to tell Shannon when she’s acting out, because all she does is get mad and ices me out. So I just don’t say anything most of the time.” And now we see why. That was a lot to deal with while sitting in the comfort of my own home. I can’t imagine actually being a part of this argument, especially given the lack of air conditioning. The lack of central air in that Jamaican villa sounds miserable, let alone the getting scream at aspect.

Tamra admitted, “It really upset me that Shannon would go off on me at the restaurant. I am the one that is always there for her, makes excuses for her behavior, and supports everything she does. Sometimes it’s exhausting!” It has to be. Say what you want about Tamra, but she has been very patient with Shannon.

She clarified, “I never told Gina that Shannon was a bad friend. Those were Gina‘s words, not mine. As Shannon would say, ‘Don’t put words in my mouth.'” But Tamra never said that Shannon was a “good” friend, especially when she was explicitly asked about it… in front of the entire cast.

Tamra continued, “When I didn’t say ‘Yes, Shannon is a good friend’ right away, Shannon stormed off, and  of course I chased after her.” She explained, “I tried to talk to Shannon about being a more positive person. I really don’t think that Shannon sees how she’s acting, but all she wanted to do was attack me.” Deflection. Deflection. Deflection. It has become a go-to move in the Real Housewife playbook. It very rarely accomplishes anything, but it does serve as a distraction.

RELATED: Tamra Judge Explains Why Her Husband Thinks She “Enables” Shannon Beador; Insists Their Friendship Is Not Codependent

Tamra wrote,”Kelly [Dodd] telling Shannon that I said she’s not a good friend didn’t help things out. Again, those were NOT my words.” Kelly was just trying to get Shannon to see Tamra’s point of view; i.e. Shannon makes everything about herself. She was not quoting Tamra verbatim. Tamra recalled, “Kelly asked me on the raft if Shannon ever calls and asks about Eddie [Judge], and I said …NO!” That doesn’t exactly translate to Shannon being a “good friend” in Tamra’s eyes.

Tamra called out Shannon yet again: “To insinuate that I’m feeding into Emily and Gina having problems with her infuriates me. Take responsibility for your own actions. You did this, not me.” Let’s hope that Shannon takes some responsibility for her own actions at the Season 13 reunion. Hopefully watching these episodes has helped her correct this “all about me” syndrome. Then again, this has been going on for a few seasons, so what’s going to change now? Everyone is rooting for post-divorce Shannon to succeed, but it’s just so tough when she’s being so rude to the new girls and self-involved in conversations with her close friends.

Tamra declared, “Everyone  was coming from a place of concern that night, and I just don’t understand how Shannon can’t see it.” Really? This tunnel vision perspective is classic Shannon. Who is actually surprised that Shannon got in arguments with everyone who was concerned about her well-being?

Tamra preached, “When you continue to complain about the same thing over and over again and do nothing about it, I can’t feel sorry for you anymore. You have choices in life. Either you can be happy or you can be miserable. I told Shannon it’s time for her to flip the switch and be happy .” Amen, Tamra. Amen.