The Valley star Brittany Cartwright is feeling “strong” amid her ongoing separation from estranged husband Jax Taylor.
“I feel good,” Cartwright, 35, exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, April 2, while promoting season 1 of The Valley. “I feel very strong and I’m proud of myself for doing what’s right for my mental health and for my family.”
Cartwright confirmed in February that she and Taylor, 44, had separated after nearly five years of marriage. They continue to coparent son Cruz, whom they welcomed in 2021. According to Cartwright, she had let issues with Taylor slide too “many times” in the past instead of prioritizing her own needs.
“I’ve forgiven for things that I shouldn’t have over the past years, but I just have always loved him so much and stood by him no matter what,” she told Us. “I’m always taking up for him, always apologizing, always cleaning up messes, and after nine years, that can really wear on you.”
The Bravo star continued, “I think we go up and down. Even he goes up, up and down. In the beginning, he did not want me to leave, but I think now he’s kind of leaning into it a little bit more.”
Cartwright and Taylor are currently living separately. That being said, officially getting a divorce is not presently on the table.
“I definitely think about it, but I’m just not there yet,” Cartwright explained, adding that she’s been living in an Airbnb since January. “You go back and forth. It’s so hard when you have a kid, so it’s like a lot of ups and downs. Some days I’m like ‘Never coming back,’ and then other times I’m like, ‘We’ll see what happens.’ So it’s all up in that air right now.”
As Cartwright continues to navigate the estranged pair’s separation, she hinted that she’s not opposed to putting herself out there in the dating scene.
“I mean, I wouldn’t say [I’m] single, but am I ready to mingle? Maybe,” she quipped, noting that “it would have to be [with] somebody really great.”
Cartwright further stressed that she and Taylor have not formally spoken about the terms of their separation.
“We haven’t really [gone] too far into [a] discussion over that kind of stuff, but I feel like a whole part of the separation is to experiment and see what you really want to do for your relationship,” she said. “Do we want to get back together or do we think that we’d be happier with somebody else? So it’s weird. It’s crazy.”
Cartwright also noted that she would “of course” love to have more kids and give Cruz siblings, but that ultimately “depends” on her relationship status with Taylor.
“Am I going to be in another relationship? Is it going to be back with Jax?” she explained. “I don’t really know yet, but I’m not going to stay in a relationship just because I want to have another kid. Right now I’ve got Cruz and I’m so blessed that I have him. Some people aren’t even lucky enough to have one kid, so I’m never going to take that for granted.”
Cartwright and Taylor’s marital woes are currently playing out on Bravo’s The Valley, which is a spinoff of Vanderpump Rules.
“I knew it was going to be relatable for the viewers. We are all going through different parts in our relationships, like, every single couple or Zack [Wickham] is single,” Cartwright told Us. “There’s just different things for everybody that they can relate to, and I think we’re doing a good job of being super real and honest and open about everything that’s going on.”
The Valley airs Tuesdays on Bravo at 9 p.m. ET.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
