Bravo Insider Exclusive!

Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, sweepstakes, and more!

Sign Up for Free to View
The Daily Dish Vanderpump Rules

Does Raquel Leviss Regret Anything She's Done on Vanderpump Rules?

The Vanderpump Rules cast member on what she's learned from watching herself on TV.

By Jocelyn Vena
What You Didn't Know About Raquel Leviss In Her Own Words

Raquel Leviss wants Vanderpump Rules fans to know this about sharing her life with the world: "I don’t regret anything because I am true to who I," she recently told The Daily Dish (more in the clip above).

How to Watch

Watch Vanderpump Rules on Peacock and the Bravo app.  

Raquel has been hanging out with the Vanderpump Rules cast for several years thanks to her relationship with James Kennedy and has found herself in several emotional situations: the "Bambi-eyed bitch" moment with Lala Kent, the puppy shower invite that left Stassi Schroeder with feelings, missing her shift at SUR during Pride, and facing off with Lala (again) at the girls' wine night, among others.

And this season has shared even more of her life with the world after getting a job at SUR and putting more of her romance with James out there. Along the way, she's definitely learned a lot about herself.

"Well, watching myself, I feel like I don’t give myself enough credit when I’m filming. Because I see the scenes afterward and I’m like, 'Oh my gosh, I could have brought this up or I could have, you know, defended myself more at this point.' But I think I was, I just overthink it in my head. I feel like I need to stop doing that and just kind of go with my instincts more. But also watching myself back, I feel like a lot of people don’t realize what they look like until they see themselves on camera," she said. "I noticed that I don’t blink a lot. I like stare [laughs]. And I feel like my eyes get wider as I’m trying to listen; instead of my ears getting bigger, my eyes get bigger [laughs]."

Raquel Leviss: Seeing James Kennedy Sober Is Such a Turn on

Raquel's intelligence has definitely been something that's been poked fun at, and she takes issue with that criticism, especially given her plans to go to grad school in the future.

"I feel like the biggest misconception is that I’m dumb. I literally hate that so much. And they’re judging that off of who I decide to date and my decisions and how I react to things. And to me, that’s not being dumb; that’s just being patient and understanding and compassionate," she said. "So, I really hate being called stupid and it hurts my self-esteem. It hurts my whole thought process going into it. Because I am being vulnerable — probably more so than anyone else on the show because of my social anxiety."

She added, "A big part of the reason why I do the show is because it helps me branch out of my comfort zone. And it pushes me to limits that most people aren’t pushed to. And I feel like I grow the most when I overcome those things."

Pushing herself and branching out of her comfort zone is also the reason why she got into beauty pageants in the first place.

"I always go back and forth between whether or not I’m gonna compete in another pageant. The reason why I go, went into pageantry is also because of my social anxiety. I started doing pageants and now I feel like I have Vanderpump Rules to do that, to challenge me. Pageants are expensive. There’s a lot of time that goes into it. You have a public speaking coach and a walking coach. It’s a lot of time and energy that I just feel like I don’t really need to spend on right now," she said. "And I’d rather just focus on myself.  Who knows? I don’t know, maybe this summer I’ll compete in a pageant just like my last one. My last hurrah, who knows?"

Want more Vanderpump Rules? New episodes air every Tuesday at 9/8c or catch up on this season through the Bravo app.

More from Raquel in the Vanderpump Rules Season 8 After Show, below.