Valerie Bertinelli's Ex Mike Goodnough Says Their Relationship Was 'Complicated': 'Most Painful Experience of My Life'

Mike Goodnough, ex-partner of Valerie Bertinelli, recently explained on Instagram why he and the former Food Network host split in November 2024. Though he said sharing his feelings made him feel “absolutely miserable,” it was “something I have to do.”

“A couple weeks ago, there was an ado about conflict between Valerie and I that ended up in the press. A post of mine here was the cause of it. I regret having posted it. I wish I hadn't. The issue addressed was real,” Goodnough expressed in reference to a now-deleted Instagram post where he claimed he never spoke poorly about Bertinelli.

“My post made it worse rather than better. Valerie and I had a complicated relationship. Our time as a couple ended months ago, but our close contact only really ended recently. So, it is more 'fresh' than it would seem,” the lifestyle writer added. “In trying to be a couple, an endless number of things got in the way. Almost all of them were ‘external.’ They were things outside of our relationship per se, which nonetheless interfered.”

Despite breaking things off after 10 months together, Goodnough said he “loved Valerie more than I’ve ever loved someone in a relationship of choice,” as he claimed his love for his son is a “whole different thing.”

He continued, “As a result, the dissolution of our relationship and way it played out has been by far the most painful experience of my life. It has been so acutely agonizing, it has entirely changed the scale of how much heartbreak can hurt. What was once a 10 is now a four.”

Though the writer “hoped” he and his ex-girlfriend would “find a way to a gentle parting rather than a closed door,” he has come to “accept” that their relationship is over.

“I reached out again this week… No answer is an answer, though,” he detailed.

After having “cried about this enough,” Goodnough claimed he “won't have anything more to say” about Bertinelli and their relationship.

“It’s time to move on,” he noted.

The One Day at a Time actress and Goodnough started their long-distance relationship in the beginning of 2024. The former couple connected on Instagram a few years ago when he commented on one of the actress’ photos.

“I thought he was interesting,” Bertinelli told People in an interview. “It was strictly platonic, but there was something about him that I connected with that felt familiar. A comfort level. He felt like a kindred spirit.”

After their breakup this year, the Hot in Cleveland star wrote on Instagram that her ex-boyfriend was a “big part of helping me heal from some old childhood wounds I never knew what to do with or even where to start.”

She added, “I know I am becoming a much stronger and more benevolent human for having met him and spent time with him.”