Luann de Lesseps Reflects on How Her Family Issues Contributed to Her Second Stint in Rehab

Luann de Lesseps is back — and committed to maintaining her sobriety following a second rehab stint last summer.

As fans learned in the Season 10 reunion, Bethenny Frankel was among the circle of friends who staged an intervention for Luann last summer, which was followed by her second time in treatment in less than a year. The other pals included in that meeting was Barbara — and in the Season 11 premiere of The Real Housewives of New York City, Luann opened up more to Barbara about that time in her life.

"You saved me, I'll tell you, 'cause I needed to go back. This whole thing with the kids really was upsetting. It was too overwhelming — and I didn't have the tools that I needed from the first time around," she told her longtime friend at her home in the Hamptons, the same home which had caused legal issues with her son and daughter last summer. "So I'm glad I went back."

Luann then shared in interview during the episode: "Before the summer, I felt like I really needed a change in my life, so I fell in love with upstate. I fell in love with the house. But I really couldn't get a bank loan enough to buy the house upstate, so I wanted to sell my property in the Hamptons. But the children didn't like that very much. They stopped me with their father by putting a hold on it legally. That really was upsetting to me and so that kind of threw me off the rails and I kind of had a relapse and had to go back to rehab."

"My kids and that they see me sober is so great," Luann, who later noted that "it's a struggle," said in tears while sitting down with Barbara. "I can't slip again."

Barbara shined a bit more light on the intervention in 2018 and noted that she was among those there trying to help Luann at that time, especially in the wake of her issues with Tom D'Agostino: "She was not of sound mind or body. She was a mess... I was not about to watch Luann make a detrimental mistake to her life — and it was the right time to go back to rehab."

Later in the episode, Luann also shut down the anecdotes Ramona Singer shared about her during the Season 10 reunion (clip below).

Did the Ladies Know Luann de Lesseps Was Drinking Again?

Fans can watch Luann's journey every Wednesday at 9/8c. Check out what's to come, below.

Your First Look at Season 11 of The Real Housewives of New York City