Jax Taylor Admits He 'Didn't Want to Leave' Mental Health Facility After 30 Days as He 'Loved' the 'Structure'
Who would have thought that Jax Taylor would turn into a therapy advocate?
On the Friday, September 6, episode of his and estranged wife Brittany Cartwright’s podcast “When Reality Hits,” the Vanderpump Rules alum, 45, raved over his recent 30-day stay at a mental health facility.
“It was a very, very scary step for me, but it really needed to happen. It’s something I’ve been holding onto for many, many years,” began Taylor, who's in the midst of a divorce from Cartwright. “I’ve known for years that there’s been something wrong but I just didn’t want to know. During my stay, I found out a lot about myself. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.”
The reality TV star confessed he was not open to accepting help at the start, but he grew to understand the importance of his stay.
“When I got there, I f------ hated it. Then I just let myself [take it all in] and then I loved it. I didn’t want to f------ leave,” the father-of-one, who shares son Cruz with Cartwright, spilled. “I really, really didn’t. I was so sad leaving. I was crying. I’m like, ‘I don’t want to go.’ I was scared to leave those front doors because I had structure every day.”
The House of Villains alum then shared his day-to-day routine at the health center.
“I was allowed to have my phone during specific hours. When I wasn’t in therapy — which was approximately seven hours a day — I was allowed outside the facility for an hour each day. So I would go to the gym and I was accompanied by a nurse. A driver from the facility took me and watched me the whole time,” he shared.
Taylor had a big epiphany while working on himself at the facility, noting, “My days were very, very structured, and I realized that’s something I really needed in my life.”
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Despite how much Taylor gushed over the progress he made throughout the program, he acknowledged he still has plenty of things to work on.
“Just because I went to the facility for 30 days definitely doesn’t mean I’m coming out cured or changed by any means. Although I wish it did work that way, I will not. I’m a work in progress,” he remarked.
Recalling how much he didn’t want to leave, Taylor remembered thinking, “I was like, ‘God, I know the world’s going to hit me a ton of bricks.’ And I got to go back to filming [The Valley]. I know everybody’s mad at me, and they’re going to come at me.'”
The Bravolebrity, who is navigating his divorce from Cartwright, 35, said he was “scared” to face the world.
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“It’s scary to work on yourself. It’s scary to tell people that you have problems,” Taylor stated. “I now have a little bit better understanding of my mental health struggles. I’ve been put on some serious medication that’s actually been helping me out a lot. In time, I’ll definitely speak more about it openly, but right now I kind of just need to deal with this process.”