DAX AND KRISTEN ON THE ROCKS?
AFTER A RECENT RELAPSE, THE HOLLYWOOD COUPLE GET REAL ABOUT THEIR MARRIAGE
The pandemic has been pretty tough on a lot of relationships, and not even Hollywood’s A-listers have been exempt from the strain. During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on June 29, Kristen Bell opened up about the pressure that lockdown has put on her eight-year marriage to Dax Shepard. “At the beginning of the pandemic, we were at each other’s throats,” the actress, 40, told guest host Chelsea Handler. “And then all the doors locked in our house. Like, we had to stay inside. And we were like, ‘Woof. We need to get a handle on the annoyances.’”
The pair – who have been together for 14 years – have always been advocates for couples therapy, but Kristen revealed they’ve partaken in solo sessions to air their grievances about each other. “[Our therapist] suggested that we go to therapy separately, kind of so that we could talk s--t about each other,” she admitted. “And we did! And it’s been great!
“The reality is, if you’re living with one human being – I don’t care if it’s your partner or your husband or your wife, whoever it is, your roommate – you need to brush up on your toolbox,” Bell added.
“Because you will find that person annoying. Relationships take work.”
The couple have never shied away from sharing the ups and downs of their marriage, as well as their individual mental health struggles. In a 2017 interview with Us Weekly, Shepard, 46, said he and Bell are “opposites”, and admitted it takes “a tremendous amount of work and therapy for [us] to coexist”.
And while Bell revealed she would be standing by her husband and supporting him after Shepard admitted to relapsing on painkillers last year after 16 years of sobriety, she also revealed earlier this year that the pair “needed a little therapy brush-up” – prompting whispers amongst fans that all is not well with the couple.
Adding to the speculation, the actress has been spending a lot of time with her The Woman in the House co-star Benjamin Levy Aguilar in recent weeks. The pair were first spotted together in early
May having lunch in a park in Los Feliz, Los Angeles. Days later, they shared a laugh while on a hike in the city’s Griffith Park (above right). “This has added to whispers that she’s leaning on Benjamin because her marriage to Dax is in trouble,” a source told InTouch.
On June 1, the pals were also seen leaving a gym together after a sweat session. “They obviously hit it off and have become close, and Dax wouldn’t be human if he weren’t a little bit jealous,” added the InTouch source. “Especially since they have had their fair share of problems recently.”
Shepard needn’t worry, though, as Bell remains resolute that working through the couple’s issues will always be her priority. “He was like, ‘I don’t want to risk this family and I did, so let’s put new things in place to make sure it doesn’t happen again,’” she said of her husband following his relapse confession. “We’re going back to therapy. I love that he’s addicted to growth.
I will continue to stand by him because he’s very, very worth it.”
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