‘Sister Wives’ star Christine Brown reflects on leaving polygamy: ‘Every single cell in my body is happier’
Kody Brown has a total of 18 children between Christine, Meri, Janelle and Robyn
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}It has been almost a year since Christine Brown left her plural marriage of 26 years – and she could not be happier.
"Sister Wives" star Christine Brown revealed that following her split from Kody Brown, she has walked away from her fundamentalist Mormon faith.
"I get to live life for me," the 50-year-old told the latest issue of People magazine. "My whole world has changed, and every single cell in my body is happier."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brown previously shared a life with her former spouse and his three wives Meri, Janelle and Robyn in Flagstaff, Arizona. Brown and Kody, who wed in 1994, are parents to son Paedon, 24, as well as daughters Aspyn, 27; Mykelti, 26; Gwendlyn, 20; Ysabel, 19, and Truely, 12. Kody has a total of 18 children between the women.
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Christine Brown now resides in Salt Lake City with her daughter, Truely. (TLC)
Brown told the outlet that it was 2018 when she first realized that plural marriage was not working for her.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I realized I didn’t really want to live it anymore," she admitted. "I didn’t like sharing a husband or feeling like I wasn’t important."
Last November, Brown announced on Instagram that she and Kody had called it quits. She then moved to Salt Lake City with her daughter, Truely.
"We got here and that night when I went to bed, I realized I was home," Brown recalled. "It was just like that. And I got to start over again, and it was exciting, and it was new and so scary because I had no idea what to expect, but I was so excited. I remember feeling hope for the first time in a long time because I just got to take my life on my own and go. It was wonderful."
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Kody Brown poses with his then-four wives at one of their homes in Las Vegas. (The Associated Press)
Brown said she is open to the idea of meeting someone new, but she is not ready to date yet.
"I would love to date," she said. "Love the idea of the end having a romantic partner. But I talked to Truely about it the other day, and she’s like, ‘Mom, I really like our life how it is now.’ Down the road. I’m just going to let fate take care of that one."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brown stressed that she "will be a monogamist from here on out."
At the time of their split, Kody took to Instagram and shared that Brown’s "decision to leave comes with a great deal of sadness."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}TLC's ‘Sister Wives’ has been airing since 2010. (Getty Images)
"We enjoyed many years together, and I have a large amount of respect and admiration for her," wrote the 53-year-old. "Although we are moving forward on different paths, we will always remain committed parents."
Kody and his family fled Utah in 2011 under the threat of prosecution following the premiere of their TLC series. After residing in Las Vegas, they moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, a liberal college city in a largely conservative state, in 2018.
Being married to more than one person, or bigamy, is illegal across the United States. The law in Mormon-heavy Utah is considered stricter because of a unique provision that bars married people from living with a second "spiritual spouse."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints abandoned polygamy in 1890 and strictly prohibits it today. The Browns consider themselves fundamentalist Mormons.
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Kody Brown said was ‘spiritually married’ to three of his four wives. (Photo by Stephen J. Cohen/Getty Images)
In a memo addressing legal questions about the family, Flagstaff police said Brown could not be charged with bigamy because he is legally married to one woman, Robyn. The patriarch said he is "spiritually married" to the other three women.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Sister Wives," the reality TV series that chronicles Kody’s relationships with the women, has been airing since 2010. Season 17 premieres in September.
Back in 2019, Kody told Fox News Digital that the family has agreed not to consider a fifth wife anytime soon.
"We really took the fifth wife thing off the table a long time ago," said Kody at the time. "And because we don’t want to snub the concept, we’ve always sort of been very casually dismissing it, and I think that’s one reason the question keeps coming up. But it’s technically been off the table as long as we’ve done the show."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.