New Summer House cast member KJ Dillard spoke about the downsides of being in a relationship as a public figure. During the Bravo show’s most recent season, he was dating fellow cast member Dara Levitan.
When KJ was hospitalized after the series wrapped for the season, the two took a break. He has been open about his mental health struggles.
The Bravo star opens up about a difficult relationship moment that coincided with a medical emergency
On co-star Carl Radke’s podcast, More Life With Carl Radke, KJ opened up. “A lot of people are supportive, and I’m thankful for them,” he said during the Tuesday, June 2, episode. “But then, a lot of people are hating.”
He added, “We do a good job at not letting [the public] tear us apart. It affects us individually, of course, but the relationship, we both know what we want and what we’ve gone through together. It was gnarly. It’s, honestly, some love story sh*t that we’re not gonna let outside influence affect that.”
KJ described what led to the relationship break. “Pre-show, nothing was really going on for me. Modeling was slow. I’d taken a break during the summer to focus on the show,” he explained. “Financially, I was in a terrible place. Me and Dara were struggling because I was taking out what I was going through out on her. I wasn’t even aware of it.”
On the Summer House Season 10 reunion on May 26, KJ revealed he was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder at the end of last year. He was then hospitalized after harming himself. “I also was not in therapy [at the time],” he revealed. “I was only on one medication for my anxiety and depression, but I didn’t realize that I had another diagnosis.”
After he went to recovery, Dara broke up with him. “Looking back, if me and Dara were dating when I was in recovery, it would have been a mess. I would have been focused on saving the relationship rather than focusing on my health. Recovery changed my life.”
Those needing help for mental health struggles, call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
TELL US – WILL KJ AND DARA REKINDLE THEIR RELATIONSHIP?
