Meri Brown has the concept of trust on her mind after her split from ex-husband Kody Brown.
“I am thinking a little bit about trust. You’ve heard that quote, right? Trust is transparency and consistency over time,” the 52-year-old Sister Wives star — who announced her split from Kody, 54, in December 2022 — shared in a TikTok video posted on Friday, June 30. “And that’s well and good when you are thinking about the trust that you are trying to build with others or that you want others to build with you. But what about the trust that you have for yourself? I think all too often, we don’t trust ourselves as much as we should.”
As Meri delved deeper into her thoughts on topic, she revealed that she often has trouble trusting her gut. “I will tend to rationalize the reason I should trust myself in a certain situation, and really my gut knows,” she told fans. “It’s almost about having the courage to be true and authentic to myself, to be able to do and say the things that I know that I need to do, because ultimately, when you trust yourself and you act on that trust, it’s gonna give you more power in the long run.”
Though she didn’t mention her ex-husband by name, Meri specifically spoke about the feeling of certainty in a romantic relationship — namely, “the trust that you have for somebody else, and you’re trusting them to not leave you or you’re trusting them to follow through on their word,” she said. Meri explained that even more important than feeling this confidence in someone else, however, is “trusting yourself to be able to handle it when they don’t act as you think that they should.”
Meri and Kody, who share Leon, 27, legally exchanged vows in 1990. Kody later expanded their plural family in 1993 when he spiritually married Janelle Brown. One year later, he entered a spiritual union with Christine Brown. In 2014, Meri and Kody divorced so that he could legally marry Robyn Brown and adopt her children. Kody and his first wife remained together spiritually despite their legal separation.
Kody and his blended family — the reality star is the father of 18 children — were shaken up in November 2021, when he and Christine, 51, announced their split. During a December 2022 episode of Sister Wives: One-on-One special, Meri claimed that Kody “already made the decision” to end their own marriage — without discussing it with her first. Janelle, 54, also revealed during the special that she and Kody had been “separated for several months.”
@therealmeribrown Something I’m still learning, and that is to trust myself. So often I can rationalize or justify ‘reality’ even though my gut says something else. So often I can let other people’s opinions or behaviors influence what I know for myself, and that takes my power away from ME and puts it into the hands of someone else. YOU are your best judge, because only YOU know what you need, want, deserve. TRUST yourself through your process! WorthyUp GreatnessBeginsToday
While Christine is newly engaged to David Woolley and Janelle is focused on her family, Meri has embraced her her independence in the wake of her and Kody’s breakup.
“Building businesses. Building friendships. Building a great life. All while doing whatever the hell I want,” she shared via Instagram in February.
Three months later, Meri took an “empowering” trip to the U.K., which included days of solo travel. “Adventuring. It’s what I love to do. Saying YES to seeing new places. Saying YES to meeting new people. Saying YES to doing unexpected things,” the TLC personality captioned an Instagram selfie at the time. “Saying YES to building businesses while having fun! Saying YES to the unexpected! Saying YES to a week of clarity and personal growth. Saying YES to getting to see my lifelong obsession! London, here I come!”
As Meri continues to focus on herself, some of her other family members have considered what her next chapter might look like.
“I think Meri should have multiple husbands,” Christine and Kody’s daughter Gwendlyn Brown, 21, shared via YouTube in May while rewatching a season 1 episode of Sister Wives. “She seems like the kind of person that would rock it.”
