Savannah Chrisley has been getting candid about her “pattern of painful dependency” when it comes to the men in her life, including her relationship with her father, Todd Chrisley.
The reality star opened up on the latest episode of her Unlocked podcast, where she read from her “secret diary” and touched on how her codependent behavior has affected her, particularly in regards to her relationship with male figures.
“Trauma and codependency, I feel like go hand in hand a lot of times and so that was something for me that I really had to work on,” Savannah said, per People. “And I still work on it, and I’m still very codependent.”
She described it as a “pattern of painful dependency on compulsive behaviors and approval from others in an attempt to find safety, self-worth, and identity,” noting how she “slams people” with her codependency.
Two of the relationships she touched on when speaking about her codependency were her relationship with her dad, Todd, who is currently serving a ten-year prison sentence for bank and tax fraud, and her relationship with her ex-fiancé, Nic Kerdiles, who died in a motorcycle accident on September 23, 2023.
“There are no boundaries in codependency. And that’s the thing, it’s like there’s no distinction between you, me and us,” she explained. “When I was speaking about codependency, it was between like me and my dad’s relationship, me and Nic’s relationship. Like codependency really shows up in like the male relationships in my life.”
She said it also shows up in her relationship with her younger brother, Grayson, who she has custody of while her dad and mom (Julie Chrisley) are in prison. Savannah said she has done “everything” for Grayson, making sure she is involved to a fault to spare him the trauma she felt in her own childhood.
The reality star is now trying to focus on building her own identity and hopes that will help her relationships with others grow healthier.
“So by me taking accountability for my own things and having a conversation with someone, instead of it being like a blame game, it’s like, ‘Hey, I really hope that my experience will help us.’ So you’re not blaming,” she added.
Todd and Julie had their appeal hearing on April 19 in hopes of overturning their convictions. Speaking to reporters after the hearing, Savannah said her parents were “doing as best as they can” and hoping the hearing would be a step toward getting them home.
“We have all come together and we are closer than ever,” Savannah said.