In the great tapestry of humanity, we’ve had the fall of empires, the advent of the internet, and now, the breakup of Bravo’s Paige DeSorbo and Craig Conover. This split, dear reader, isn’t just the stuff of tabloids; it’s therapy material. Yes, the fallout from this seismic shift in the Bravo-sphere has people shelling out $200 an hour to unpack their feelings. Forget the Middle East peace talks or the housing crisis—our collective emotional bandwidth is now laser-focused on what went wrong between two reality stars.
And honestly? Same.
Let’s dig into why Paige and Craig’s breakup has triggered an existential reckoning among Bravo fans, millennials in therapy, and possibly your mother’s book club.
The Golden Couple That Wasn’t
To the uninitiated, Paige DeSorbo and Craig Conover were the Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan of Bravo: attractive, vaguely aspirational, and endlessly memeable. Paige, the fashion-forward, quick-witted queen of Summer House, met Craig, a pillow-making Southern charmer from Southern Charm, on the first season of Winter House. Sparks flew. Long-distance logistics were navigated. Fans swooned. “Finally,” we sighed. “Two messy, reality-TV-adjacent millennials who seem like they might actually make it.”
Except they didn’t. And while breakups are as common as Kyle Cooke’s drunken rants, Paige and Craig’s dissolution cut deep. Why? Because we watched it unfold, episode by episode, Instagram post by Instagram post, until we were more invested in their love story than in our own tax filings.
Parasocial Relationships: The Throuple You Didn’t Know You Were In
Let’s address the elephant in the room: parasocial relationships. For the unversed (or for those still mourning Bennifer’s 2004 split), parasocial relationships are the one-sided emotional attachments we form with celebrities. And Paige and Craig? They were practically family.
We saw their highs (the ski trips! The red carpets!) and their lows (Craig’s stubborn refusal to move to New York, Paige’s understandable hatred of Charleston humidity). These weren’t just Bravo plot points; they were our plot points. Watching them navigate their romance felt eerily like watching ourselves—if we were hotter, funnier, and had Andy Cohen narrating our every move.
So when Paige announced the breakup on her podcast, Giggly Squad, it hit like a Bravo-sized gut punch. People sobbed into their Aperol spritzes. Group chats were flooded with theories about Craig’s inability to compromise. And, apparently, therapists found themselves fielding sob-filled rants about Paige’s decision to prioritize her career over Craig’s monogrammed hand towels.
Therapy Is the New Bravo Aftershow
The fact that therapists are talking about this breakup—publicly!—is a testament to its cultural weight. In a now-viral Instagram video, therapist Emma Mahony revealed that half her sessions post-split have involved clients processing Paige and Craig’s breakup. Let that sink in.
Not the Ukraine war. Not climate change. Not the fact that eggs cost $9 now. Paige and Craig.
Why? Because Paige DeSorbo, knowingly or not, gave women permission to do the unthinkable: leave a perfectly “good” relationship. She and Craig didn’t have a dramatic Scandoval-style implosion. There was no cheating, no screaming fights, no overblown accusations about who hogged the blanket. Just two people who wanted different things. As Paige so eloquently put it, “You can be 32 and decide to change the entire course of your life.”
That’s the kind of quote you embroider on a pillow—or, in Craig’s case, commission for your decorative pillow empire.
The “Good Partner” Problem
Here’s the real kicker: Craig was, by all accounts, a great boyfriend. Paige said so herself on her podcast, repeatedly emphasizing that he was the best partner she’s ever had. And yet, she still walked away.
For women in their 30s, this is groundbreaking. Society has drilled into us that if you find a man who’s halfway decent—doesn’t cheat, texts back, occasionally listens to your Spotify playlist—you should lock it down. The idea that you can leave a “good” relationship simply because it doesn’t align with your personal growth? Blasphemous.
Cue the existential crises in therapy offices nationwide.
The “You’re 32, Why Aren’t You Married?” Brigade
Adding fuel to the Bravo bonfire is the persistent cultural pressure for women to “settle down” by their early 30s. Paige directly addressed this on her podcast, calling out the rhetoric she faces online: “You’re 32, shouldn’t you pack it in and get married?”
No, Brenda from Ohio, she shouldn’t. And this is why Paige’s decision is resonating so deeply. Women everywhere are feeling the pressure to tie the knot, pop out a couple of kids, and pretend their husband’s fantasy football league is riveting. Paige, by contrast, said, “Nah, I think I’ll just thrive.”
Her choice has struck a chord with fans of all ages. As one 50-year-old commenter wrote on Mahony’s Instagram, “It’s nice to see Paige normalizing this breakup. There’s nothing wrong with it, and people should not even have to explain their breakups to others unless they want to.” Another fan put it succinctly: “Your internal happiness and feeling at peace should be a priority.” Preach.
The Bravo Effect: Life Lessons from Reality TV
For years, reality TV has been dismissed as lowbrow entertainment, the intellectual equivalent of eating an entire bag of Hot Cheetos in one sitting. But Paige and Craig’s breakup proves that reality stars can offer more than just drunken antics and ill-advised fashion choices. They can also spark genuine conversations about what it means to live authentically.
As therapist Mandy Heisler explained, Paige’s breakup is empowering women to evaluate their own relationships and make choices that prioritize their happiness. “She demonstrates that success, independence, and personal fulfillment can coexist without needing to conform to traditional expectations,” Heisler said.
Translation: You don’t need a partner to live your best life. And if Bravo happens to film your glow-up? Even better.
Paige DeSorbo: Unintentional Role Model
At the end of the day, Paige DeSorbo didn’t set out to become a feminist icon. She was just a reality star navigating her 30s, her career, and her surprisingly durable hair extensions. But in walking away from Craig, she’s shown women everywhere that it’s okay to put yourself first—even if it means disappointing a few fans, a Bravo exec or two, and probably Craig’s mom.
As for Craig? Don’t worry about him. He has his pillows. He has Charleston. And he’ll probably have another Bravo-flavored romance in no time.
But Paige? Paige has her freedom. And that’s something no amount of Bravo drama can top.