Taylor Frankie Paul said postpartum depression and being “too scared to ask for help” were the reasons she stayed with ex-husband Dakota Mortensen for so long.
The “Mormon Wives” star wrote a lengthy post on Instagram Thursday, saying she blamed herself for not being able to move on from her tumultuous relationship with Mortensen until they recently broke up. Mortensen has a 2-year-old son, Ever.
When Paul, 31, kept quiet about her internal struggles, Mortensen, 33, allegedly used that to his “advantage” and abused her.
“What people don’t understand is that they’re in that situation and they don’t even realize what’s going on psychologically for a long time,” she explained. “The reason you believe you’re the only one crazy is because they twist everything so that you end up feeling crazy.”
The mother-of-three accused Mortensen of “gaslighting” her into staying with him, and admitted it was “twist” that she let Mortensen have his way for so long.
She also noted that when she ultimately left Mortensen, she was “manipulated,” “threatened,” “physically harmed,” had the police called, lost friends, and ended up fighting in court for Ms. Eber’s custody.
“Our difference is that for him my love was real, not earned, and people know that,” she wrote. “I don’t know if it was the same.”
The Hulu star admitted that she and Mortensen were “both in the wrong,” but she called the police and accused Mortensen of trying to take her son away from her.
At the end of his post, Paul mentioned his online drama with co-star Mikayla Matthews, but said he would not apologize to her.
“Instead of kicking me now, she can go kick a rock,” Paul said.
Paul and Mortensen made headlines in March after filming for Season 5 of SLOMW was temporarily suspended due to an investigation into multiple domestic violence allegations involving the pair.
Additionally, Paul’s planned season of The Bachelorette was canceled by ABC after a disturbing 2023 video surfaced showing Paul throwing a chair at Mortensen in front of his now 8-year-old daughter Indi.
Although Paul was not charged in the domestic violence investigation, he temporarily lost custody of Ever.
Paul is now allowed up to 12 hours of supervised visitation with his son, according to a Utah judge’s ruling.
The judge also granted them orders of protection against each other.
The next court hearing is scheduled for June 1st.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788.
