Braunwyn Windham-Burke revealed that she had hit her husband Sean Burke ‘a couple of times’ on Wednesday’s episode of The Real Housewives Of Orange County.
The 43-year-old reality star made the confession while holed up in her Palm Springs house during California’s mandatory quarantine for coronavirus last spring.
Braunwyn was struggling, as she suddenly had to take care of her home and seven kids without help for the first time, all while trying to stay sober.
Lashing out: Braunwyn Windham-Burke revealed that she had hit her husband Sean Burke ‘a couple of times’ on Wednesday’s episode of The Real Housewives Of Orange County
Her Alcoholics Anonymous meetings had gone online, and it wasn’t the same, she affirmed.
After 20 days, Braunwyn said she felt like she was losing her mind, stuck at home and frequently lashing out at Sean in a rage because she was so anxious and worried.
‘We live in two different worlds, Sean and I,’ she said. ‘I live in the real one, where people are dying and people are getting sick, and Sean lives in one where everything’s fine. I sometimes feel like the only grown-up in this house, and I am so tired.’
When Sean belittled her for not understanding the vacuum cleaner, Braunwyn snapped.
Quarantine confession: The 43-year-old reality star made the confession while holed up in her Palm Springs house during California’s mandatory quarantine for coronavirus last spring
‘Instead of helping, he made fun of me,’ she recalled. ‘And I lost it, and I smacked him.’
Braunwyn added that she had hit Sean ‘a couple times’ in her life, including once during a recent trip to Aspen, Colorado, where she hit him hard across the face because she wanted to go drinking, as their now seven-year-old son Curren watched.
‘Looking back, it was a side of me that I’d never seen,’ Braunwyn shared. ‘It was bad.’
Couple times: Braunwyn added that she had hit Sean ‘a couple times’ in her life, including once during a recent trip to Aspen, Colorado, where she hit him hard across the face because she wanted to go drinking, as their now seven-year-old son Curren watched
She then hid in her home’s walk-in closet because she didn’t want to be around Sean.
‘I feel trapped in my house, I feel trapped in my marriage, I feel trapped,’ Braunwyn told the cameras. ‘Emotionally and physically.’
‘I have put a happy spin on my marriage for a long time, but the truth is, there are some big things that have been happening and that are part of me that we’ve never talked about,’ she said.
Feeling trapped: ‘I feel trapped in my house, I feel trapped in my marriage, I feel trapped,’ Braunwyn told the cameras. ‘Emotionally and physically’
Braunwyn wanted a drink, and affirmed, ‘I’m not okay. I thought I was okay, but I’m not okay.’
Her relationship with her husband Sean was tested by her sobriety after decades of drinking, which forced her to be relentlessly honest with herself.
Whether by choice or for safety reasons, she had gotten rid of her two nannies and housekeeper, and suddenly needed to learn how to work things around her home.
Strained relationship: Her relationship with her husband Sean was tested by her sobriety after decades of drinking, which forced her to be relentlessly honest with herself
As she attempted to use her washing machine, she had to ask Sean what the difference was between a ‘normal’ load and a ‘heavy-duty’ one.
‘This is the first time I’ve gone without a housekeeper since I was in high school,’ Braunwyn explained, adding, ‘I live in a smart house, which is great, unless you’re not a smart person.’
Her kids were squabbling and roughhousing all around her, and she could find no peace.
Washing machine: As she attempted to use her washing machine, she had to ask Sean what the difference was between a ‘normal’ load and a ‘heavy-duty’ one.
She posted a sign in the kitchen: ‘In order not to lose my mind, the new kitchen hours are: 7:30-9, 11:30-12:30, 4-5:30. Otherwise it’s closed! Love, your mother.’
Braunwyn’s obsessive-compulsive tendencies led her to clean the house all day long, from 6 am to 10 pm, which left her weary.
‘Maybe it’s cause I’m trapped in the house with seven kids, but things that were kind of annoying are now really annoying,’ she shared, before declaring her home ‘a monarchy.’
Mind control: She posted a sign in the kitchen: ‘In order not to lose my mind, the new kitchen hours are: 7:30-9, 11:30-12:30, 4-5:30. Otherwise it’s closed! (Love), your mother’
Braunwyn wasn’t the only cast member having a tough time quarantining at home.
The cast was shown in its opening credits wearing masks as they held out their usual oranges, and a screen credit noted that they were now filming all their scenes themselves.
‘One week ago, we thought that everything was fine,’ said Shannon Beador, 56, opening the episode. ‘Seven days later, everything’s changed.’
Masks on: The cast was shown in its opening credits wearing masks as they held out their usual oranges, and a screen credit noted that they were now filming all their scenes themselves
Four days into quarantine, Shannon and Braunwyn agreed via videoconference that ‘little things’ no longer mattered, and they showed each other their dark roots and lack of makeup.
Shannon had a lung issue that made her terrified of catching the coronavirus, and she imposed her own restriction on boyfriend John Janssen and her family: No leaving her home.
When John’s visiting son Joe flouted her rules, she grew upset and John left, but ultimately returned and apologized to her.
True colors: Four days into quarantine, Shannon Beador and Braunwyn agreed via videoconference that ‘little things’ no longer mattered, and they showed each other their dark roots and lack of makeup
Shannon later discovered that her daughter Stella, 16, tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a party, which sent her into a panic even though she tested negative three times.
Emily Simpson, 44, a mom of three, was also having a hard time at home as her kids always seemed to need her attention, but her marriage was better than ever.
She met up with Braunwyn and Kelly Dodd, 45, and found that Kelly denied COVID’s power.
Getting anxious: Shannon later discovered that her daughter Stella, 16, tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a party, which sent her into a panic even though she tested negative three times
‘This is completely absurd that we are shutting down a whole economy,’ Kelly complained. ‘People need to feed their families, and we are blowing this all out of proportion.’
She left her daughter Jolie, 13, with her father for a week, and flew to New York City to see her fiancé Rick Leventhal, 60.
Braunwyn was horrified, saying privately, ‘For me to leave my kids in the middle of a global pandemic would never be an option. I just can’t understand taking that risk for a booty call.’
Catching up: Emily Simpson, 44, met up with Braunwyn and Kelly Dodd, 45, and found that Kelly denied COVID’s power
Completely absurd: ‘This is completely absurd that we are shutting down a whole economy,’ Kelly complained. ‘People need to feed their families, and we are blowing this all out of proportion’
Once Kelly hit New York, she had a hot dog from a street vendor and insisted that she was cautious about COVID-19 but unafraid.
‘There is nothing that is gonna separate me and my man,’ Kelly told the cameras, comparing COVID-19 to swine flu as she worked out in a building stairwell and Rick gave her a pedicure.
She returned home to Palm Springs when restrictions against socializing began to ease.
Street food: Once Kelly hit New York, she had a hot dog from a street vendor and insisted that she was cautious about COVID-19 but unafraid
Emily, Braunwyn, Shannon and Kelly immediately met to catch up, and their conversations centered around castmates past and present.
Shannon revealed that she felt lost after ending her friendship with ex-castmate Tamra Judge, 53, who had once been part of her Tres Amigos trio with ex-castmate Vicki Gunvalson, 58.
No one was sure what to think of new castmate Elizabeth Vargas, who posted on social media that there was something suspicious going on with research around the coronavirus.
Cast talk: Emily, Braunwyn, Shannon and Kelly immediately met to catch up, and their conversations centered around castmates past and present
In a confessional, Elizabeth doubled down, saying she wasn’t sure whether COVID-19 was manufactured by ‘Big Pharma’ or ‘just happened to come from a monkey.’
Shannon told her friends that she kept hearing Elizabeth was ‘full of s***,’ and Emily offered that their castmate had ‘a narrative that she tells people about her life.’
Braunwyn, who said she had ‘a lot of time’ on her hands, dug into Elizabeth’s life, and found out that she was renting her home to tourists and had taken out or defaulted on big loans.
Coronavirus questions: In a confessional, Elizabeth doubled down, saying she wasn’t sure whether COVID-19 was manufactured by ‘Big Pharma’ or ‘just happened to come from a monkey’
Her conclusion: Elizabeth was not as rich as she said she was.
But when Elizabeth spoke to Gina Kirschenheiter, 36, she shared that in fact she had been going through a sea change in her life that had made her approach money differently.
Elizabeth had been engaged in divorce proceedings from her ex, and the COVID-19 crisis had made her realize that money didn’t make her that happy after all.
New outlook: When Elizabeth spoke to Gina Kirschenheiter, 36, she shared that in fact she had been going through a sea change in her life that had made her approach money differently
She settled her divorce and organized a trip for the cast to Lake Arrowhead, California, where she hoped to put any rumors about her past or questions about her stories to rest.
Near the end of the show, the Black Lives Matter protests were shown, and the RHOC cast said they were ‘saddened’ and ‘disgusted’ by racial inequities and the death of George Floyd.
‘Watching George Floyd be murdered in front of my eyes changed me,’ Braunwyn said in a confessional. ‘There’s no excuse for the fact that I tuned this out for 42 years.’
She marched in a protest with her kids and vowed, ‘Orange County is f***ing changing. I’m sorry. It is. We’re not just going to sit around and buy s*** anymore.’
The Real Housewives Of Orange County will return next week on Bravo.
Racial inequality: Braunwyn marched in a Black Lives Matter protest with her kids and vowed, ‘Orange County is f***ing changing. I’m sorry. It is. We’re not just going to sit around and buy s*** anymore’