Courtney Stodden had toxic marriage

9 February 2018

Courtney Stodden has "daddy issues".

Courtney Stodden

The 23-year-old reality star admitted her estranged husband Doug Hutchison - who was 50 when she married him at the age of just 16 - was a "father figure" for her but the dynamic in their relationship was never healthy because she always felt "suffocated", and things eventually went "toxic".

Speaking of their eventual final split last February, she said: "I was like, you know what, we were still having issues, but we still had a lot of love for each other. But it was kind of getting to a toxic place. He could feel my distance and I think he could also feel I needed to grow.

"The issues was that I kind of felt suffocated. He was looking at saving this young girl, this damsel.

"[I have] daddy issues. I needed a father figure, family, love and Doug provided that for me.

"As I matured, I know that it was not a completely healthy situation for me. I realised I cannot grow in that environment. I can't learn about myself and feel free in a marriage, or that kind of marriage.

"I need to make mistakes and go through pain. I started to do that and Doug wasn't really a fan.

"He wanted to protect me, and it kind of turned into resentment for me. I needed to grow on my own. I couldn't really do that with Doug with the fatherly marriage.

"He didn't like that and he was heartbroken. It still hurts me that he is still heartbroken. It is obvious that he is."

The 'Celebrity Big Brother' star first split from the 'Green Mile' actor when she was 19, and admitted it was because she wanted to "screw" other men.

She said: "In that single spree, it wasn't necessarily to be mature and find myself and stuff like that.

"II just wanted to go out and screw to be completely honest, because I had never had that opportunity. I went from my parents to Doug. I didn't go to prom or go on dates with other guys."

Last month, Courtney issued a plea on Instagram to reconcile with Doug, despite having found love again with 37-year-old entrepreneur Chris Sheng, but admitted now she shared the post in a "weak moment" because she's scared he won't want anything to do with her once their divorce is finalised.

She told DailyMail TV: "I reached out to him and told him I was having second thoughts, I can explain that and I can take responsibility for my irrational actions. I have major trust issues.

"I was really afraid once this divorce goes through, Doug is going to flip me the bird and 'You know what, f**k you, you screwed me over and I am not going to be in your life anymore.' He based our relationship purely on the marriage.

"That freaked me out. A week before submitting our divorce, I was like 'Oh my God this guy is going to leave me."