Phaedra Parks Makes First Appearance Since Divorce Announcement, Tells Ellen DeGeneres It’s ‘Extremely Hard’ Raising Her Sons Alone

The Real Housewives Of Atlanta’s Phaedra Parks is finally speaking out about her troubled marriage to her husband Apollo Nida.

During her visit to The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Tuesday, Parks revealed how she’s been holding up since Nida was sentenced to eight years in prison for bank fraud. It was Parks’ first appearance since announcing on Oct. 10 that she would be divorcing Nida.

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Parks told Ellen DeGeneres that it has been tough raising the couple’s two sons, Ayden, 4, and Dylan, 17 months, without Nida’s help. Nida reported to a Kentucky prison in September to begin his sentence.

"It is extremely hard. My heart aches for my two sons because they are the heart and soul of who I am. That's the best thing we ever did together,” Parks said. “We have these great kids. I never wanted to do anything to diminish his character in public. But we've had some times where he's done things that weren't so cool… weren't so nice."

The attorney and reality star told DeGeneres that she had no knowledge of her husband’s illegal activities and tried to help him once she eventually learned about the charges.

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"I went out of my way to get him the best attorneys, the best investigators, and to do everything I could," Parks said. "I'm an attorney myself and so I wanted him to have the best so we could fight this together, but obviously it did not turn out like that.”