Lala Kent Reacts to Ariana Madix and Tom Sandoval Saying She Isn't a "Safe Space"
"I’ll be damned if someone doesn’t feel safe around me," the Vanderpump Rules cast member said.
Ariana Madix shocked her friends when she opened up about her mental health earlier this season of Vanderpump Rules (clip above). The bartender said this was something she hadn't shared with them before because she didn't feel like it was "safe" to do so.
"To have people say, 'Oh, this is a safe space. Why don't you tell us what you're going through?' This is not a safe space," Ariana later told Tom Sandoval during the episode. "On what f--king planet do you think this is a safe group of people to talk to about your s--t? It's not. It has never been."
Tom echoed Ariana's comments during an interview with ET earlier this month. "Obviously it kills me to see Ariana so hurt and feel so vulnerable," he said. "Obviously I'm here for her and, in that group, she doesn't have a safe space. It's frustrating to see somebody like Lala [Kent], who's like one second totally OK with people saying mean nasty things about Ariana that are completely not true and talking negatively about her and then sort of getting emotional and saying like, 'This is a safe place.' It’s like, girl you are not — you are apparently not a safe place."
Lala recently went on Instagram Live to respond to Ariana and Tom's comments. She claimed that Ariana had not been as comforting to her as she would have hoped following the passing of her father in 2018. “While I was losing my mind, needing someone like Ariana, who had lost a parent before, I needed someone to defend me,” Lala said, as reported by Us Weekly. “Instead, behind my back, she was telling me to toughen the f--k up. Does that sound like a safe space to you? I don’t think so!”
Lala went on to say that Ariana isn't the only one who struggles with depression and anxiety. For instance, Stassi Schroeder has also been open about her journey on Vanderpump Rules. “And we’ve all spoken about it. And we all sit here and offer like a hand, a heart, an ear to listen to, and [Tom] want[s] to say we’re not a ‘safe place,’” Lala said. "I think you’re feeling unsafe in your own skin and you’re projecting it onto me. I’ll be damned if someone doesn’t feel safe around me.”
She continued, "I am a f--king safe place. I’m a good ass friend.”
Lala got emotional while telling Ariana that she can always open up to her during the February 27 episode of Vanderpump Rules. "I would hope to God that if you're having feelings like that, that you would feel comfortable to come to one of us," she said.
"Hearing what Ariana has been going through internally breaks my heart because I get it. I've been there," Lala continued in an interview during that episode. "I had no idea that these were her thoughts or else I would have done something about this."
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