Even though we haven’t seen Jesse Lally’s girlfriend on screen, Lacy Nicole has certainly been a major part of the drama on The Valley.
“I … politely declined to film just for … my own personal reasons,” Lacy said. “But I am very proud of them. It takes a lot of gumption and chutzpah to put yourself out there and show those moments. Last year when they so graciously invited me on to film, I don’t think I was there emotionally, with my own mental health.”
Understandably, Lacy is mindful of her own mental health, since she and her best friend were abducted in their early 20s.
Lacy Nicole, The Valley star Jesse Lally’s girlfriend, was kidnapped “by a gang of men”
During Mental Health Awareness Month, Lacy spoke with People about the incident and its aftereffects.
“It was a horrific crime,” Lacy said. “We were taken by a gang of men … The [22] charges included human trafficking, kidnapping with the intent of sodomy and rape, assault, assault with a deadly weapon, burglary, carjacking, theft … When you’re in your early 20s, you don’t necessarily have [the tools] to handle trauma. [Meanwhile], I just swallowed it and became very unwell.”
“It’s the aftereffects that kind of boggle you,” she said. Afterward, she “decided to start learning about why I was so unwell.”
Since then, Lacy launched her Shame to Sparkle Foundation and its companion podcast. Above all, her focus is to provide resources for women who have been through traumatic experiences.
“My whole life, I loved to sparkle,” she shared. “To me, sparkling is going back to that version of you that came into this world absolutely perfect … Being a victim of a crime really does give us an opportunity to be victorious in our life. [Even more so, to say] ‘How I can help others?’”
Subsequently, Lacy feels stronger than ever. “I’ve been dragged through the mud … [But] I am human,” she said. “When everyone makes fun of my face on Instagram … it hurts my feelings, but I can handle it … I’m really proud of [how far] I’ve come.”
Lacy is not at all who I thought she would be. She’s a strong woman with a heart to help others. I hope that maybe someday we’ll see her on The Valley.
The Valley airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on Bravo. The show airs on Hayu in the UK and Ireland.
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