Real Housewife Admits to Alcohol Abuse

During the October 14 premiere of The Real Housewives of Orange County, star Braunwyn Windham-Burke made a bombshell confession: she’s an alcoholic.

During the premiere episode, Burke sat down with co-star Emily Simpson and admitted that she had alcohol dependence. Burke told Simpson, “You called me out on my drinking last year, and instead of taking it to heart, I really pushed you away. Basically, I think I just got angry at you, and I came up with reasons to be mad because that was easier.” Burke also told Simpson that the last few months have been hard for her, and that her trip to Miami was especially dark.

“I didn’t stop drinking for four days…” Burke said of her trip to Miami. “I kept drinking. Every hour I would keep doing a shot. I was drinking so much I thought I was going to die.” Burke also revealed that her husband, Sean Burke, gave her an ultimatum: if you have one more drink, you’re going to go to rehab. In a following confessional interview during the premiere, Burke said, “I don’t know if it’s divine intervention, but for the first time in my life I can say, ‘My name is Braunwyn and I’m an alcoholic.’”

Burke Shared Her Journey on Instagram

After the premiere of The Real Housewives of Orange County, Burke took to Instagram to share more about her journey with sobriety. Burke posted a photo of her many sobriety chips, which were all different colors. In the caption, Burke confirmed that she had been sober for 258 days now, and also shouted out some other sober Bravolebrities who have helped her, like Below Deck’s Captain Sandy Yawn.

Burke wrote, “258 days, one day at a time. Thank you to everyone that helped me on my journey so far, @captainsandrayawn for giving me the courage to tell my story, to @evolutionusa for your unwavering support and @tpkelly12 for telling this story as real and honestly as we could. When we started this season I was 12 days sober, we document the good and the bad, the highs and the lows, the unfiltered reality. 9 months ago my life was unmanageable, but today I’m happier then I’ve ever been, living life honestly on life’s terms.”

Many ‘Real Housewives’ Stars Are Supporting Burke in Her Sobriety

It seems as if many Real Housewives stars are being super supportive of Burke’s sobriety journey. Many Real Housewives stars commented on her Instagram photo where she wrote about her sobriety. Real Housewives of New Jersey star Margaret Josephs commented, “Thank you for sharing. You are so inspirational and strong and your story will help so many #shero.” Ashley Darby from The Real Housewives of Potomac also left a supportive comment, writing, “Such an inspiration to us all – we really appreciate your openness and positivity.”

Burke is not the only Real Housewives star who is sober. In June, Real Housewives of New York star Leah McSweeney also showed off her pink sobriety chip on Instagram. In the caption, McSweeney wrote, “It’s been a trippy 90 days.”

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