mamadrama

I guess I'm alone in being on Ari's side in this. I've had 3 children and got emotional every single time. Pregnancy hormones, combined with delivery hormones (yes, they're different), and being in a foreign place without any friends or family (the "love of my life" didn't count-I wanted my mommy) is hard. Knowing what is going to happen, even being prepared for it, is not the same thing as actually going through it. There is really no way for first time mothers to be prepared for delivery. I went to birthing classes, watched all the YouTube videos, read the books...I STILL had an "oh shit, get me outta here NOW" moment during delivery. Went through my first pregnancy in a country that's really not that much different from the US, had my husband and In-laws there, but it was still scary. Whether you're in a but or an immaculate modern hospital, delivery is scary. It's one of the main reasons why biology almost immediately wipes our muscle memory of it. Not only was Ari getting ready to have an emergency C-section, but she'd just been told that her amniotic fluid was low and that it wasn't safe for the baby. That's tough to hear in its own right. Nobody wants to hear their baby could be in jeopardy. I'm not a fan of Ariella. I don't like her. I don't think she's in love with Bini and I think she's only in Ethiopia because she thought someone would call her bluff. There was nothing wrong with her being upset, though. The real problem was that during her freakout the doctor couldn't do his job, but he was able to work around that and do general anesthesia instead. Her freaking out and not letting them do the spinal wasn't GOOD, but it's not like she's proven to be an emotionally healthy individual so far so it wasn't surprising. I think a lot of our opinions come from us just not liking her to begin with. If it were someone we liked...wait, IS there someone we like? I also sobbed at the emergency birth of my second son. I didn't care whether it was a "good look" or not. The last thing most of us care about during delivery is how we appear to strangers. They were literally pulling my daughter out of my stomach when I felt the pressure and started saying, "Nope! I don't wanna do it!" And I was 30.

I agree. I think Kenny can speak Spanish. He's pretending not to and going overboard with what he "can't" understand. (Rein it in, Kenny. Anyone with a kid or grandkid who's watched an episode of Dora knows what "hola" means.) TLC can't give us a boring, regular couple-they have to mess with shit to make it "interesting." Even Anna and Mursel laughed about the translator in interviews. They didn't need it, thought it was dumb, and hated using it.

I'm having trouble with that, too. This was not a sheltered woman, ignorant to the ways of the world. She had some money. She traveled. She gave everything up based on a promise. We could say that some of the foreigners do that on 90Day Fiance, but this goes way beyond that. She had the means to look into him and her purported new life, she just didn't.

I had it added to Hulu for $1.99 a month. Amazon Prime had the same deal going. It's good for 3 months. If you search around you might be able to find it.

Welp, India's series is one episode in and already more interesting. Keith looks even more heinous in it (he actually said a baby could be "rapeable" and, no, context doesn't make it any better). Now I'm off to see if we have a board for it.

It MUST be because of the shared trauma. I would've left the minute I quit NXIVM and he ran to his boyfriend and blabbed about me. Or when he continued to stay on after I left. Or when he sat back and listened to people, his FRIENDS, sling mud at me. Or when I saw him enthusiastically contributing to the misogynistic bullshit in SOP. Or when I tried talking to him about my feelings and he said he needed more "data." Actually, I'd have left him for using the word "data" in that context alone.

Dirty John is a scripted series about men playing dirty. This Paolo guy would fit right in because John was also a good-looking conman who pretended to be in the medical field (he was, sort of) and conned his way into the heart of a successful business woman. Season 1: John and Debra (the series is based on this article and podcast) https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-me-dirty-john/ Season 2: Betty Broderick and Dan

I think I misunderstood the narrative of this series. I thought it was a 9 part series about NXIVM (more specifically, DOS). But it's really about a handful of ex members' experience in the cult. And that's fine, but I think I'm disappointed because I was expecting some indepth information about the formation of the cult, how the "tech" worked and was created, the money laundering, underage sex, etc. Instead, it's more or less the personal experiences of a small number of ex members. Kinda like if you'd sat down to watch FYRE FRAUD thinking it was going to be an overview of the failed festival, only to learn that the documentary was really about Influencers A, B,& C's experiences with the festival. Season 2 had better be about how Bonnie gets her shit together and finally leaves Mark. Just kidding! It will probably be about Sarah's quest to have her brand removed. (Not trying to Oxenberg the situation. I know it's not really funny.)

I got your point, which is exactly why I addressed it with the David/Lana example at the end of my reply.

It would make a good season 3 of Dirty John. It seems like some of these people, like Billy McFarland and the fake heiress, didn't have an endgame. They were just kinda hoping it all magically came together at the end. Or something. I never understood John, either. Debra loved him. He had access to her money. He could've had a good life if he hadn't started screwing with her. I think some of them are addicted to that thrill.

I can understand why her classmates were uncomfortable.

Here's the picture of Dylan's dad that he showed Aunt Diane:

Sounds to me like he's hoping to get product endorsement sponsorships on Instagram.

Bachelor Chris: landscape design salesman My 13yo son: so he works at the garden center in Walmart? Bachelor Zac: Addiction Specialist My 13yo son: you think he specializes in helping people find the right addiction for them? He's a smart ass.

This was interesting. I'd never heard of this story so now I have to fall down THAT rabbit hole. It's interesting how complacent people can become under the right con. That she pulled her kid out of school and quit her job without having ever seen the Barcelona home was... something.

I'm finding the Keithos/Markos bromance to be another one of the more interesting points that the series is almost completely ignoring.

Not sure who you're aiming this at, but I also specifically addressed this point in my post...

♥️ It's a shame that, for the sake of entertainment, the David/Lanas, Ed/Roses, Eric/Leidas, Brittany/Yazans, and Angela/Michaels of the world are chosen as representatives of us. The fact is that MOST of us are just regular people who met in regular ways and just happen to be from different countries. But you're never going to see couples like us on there because we're just ordinary couples dealing with the same things that every other couple faces. The show's a hoot to watch, but it shouldn't be taken as any kind of proof or statement about International couples. Hell, I'm still convinced that half the people on here aren't even real couples! 😁 (I love your username, btw. It makes me think of Avalon.)

I'm an American married to a Brit. We met 1000s of miles from home when we were living in the same flat getting our MAs. We've been together for 15 years, have 3 (2 living, 1 deceased) beautiful children, and both have successful careers. I wouldn't call either one of us "losers." There's a difference between meeting and falling in love with a foreigner and "having" to go to another country because you CAN'T find a partner here. David/Annie=met and cultivated a relationship while he was living abroad vs David/Lana=creepy and a little disturbing and probably couldn't find someone here if he tried.

Who was Dylan's dad? I keep seeing this and I can't figure out if it's a joke or not. Rob Pilatus died in 1998. His son's name is John (Dylan's name is Dylan Ohsicho Smith) and I didn't think Fab had a kid. On IG Dylan says his dad's name is Kevin.

The only real benefit of coming over from England on the k-1 (opposed to coming from other countries) was the lack of language barrier. We didn't have to pay anyone to translate the paperwork (which can run high) and it made the process a lot easier. We thought it would go faster because he's from the UK, but it didn't. Your criminal record, physical exam, relationship history, etc has a lot to do with the timeframe but, really, sooo much has to do with your regional USCIS office and how backed up they are.

Thank you! Change DOES take time, and when you're dealing with someone from another culture, who grew up in another time and belong to a religion that's not been historically accepting, it's not something that can just happen overnight. We can choose to immediately label each other as "bigots" and cut them off or we can encourage communication and change. And some people ARE bigots and will never be accepting. I still think it's worth it to try, though. Change has to start somewhere.

Yep, someTHING. Fuck IT. (And it wasn't even necessary that the women like it, that was just an added bonus. Ugh.)

Thank you. After 20 years of practicing it I'm very well aware of what the "S" stands for... And I never said nor implied that one must "get off". I said it had to be mutual and pleasurable, not orgasmic or even sexual. Those of us in the community practice for a multitude of reasons, sexual gratification is but one. Lack of legitimate consent is a huge part of the reason this thing finally exploded. With the amount of gaslighting, hypnotism, pseudoscience therapy, and general whackery (not to mention the blackmail bullshit going down in DOS) I question any "benefits" these people claimed to have derived from the program. Bonnie left NXIVM shortly after that SOP thing. That was the tipping point for her. India literally had to be deprogrammed by a cult expert and now compares her experiences to rape.

And when he did jump scare her, he exaggerated her response when he mimicked it. I seriously want to kick that smug little grin off his face. When he was handing out shit about women's tight jeans, someone should've given HIM the "biggest dick" award-abd made it clear that they weren't talking about penis size.