The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Mary Cosby says her son Robert Jr. is doing well after his stay in a rehabilitation facility for substance abuse issues.
“He did go to rehab. He stayed for a month. He completed it. He did an excellent job. He came out a new person,” Mary, 52, said during her Wednesday, December 4, appearance on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live.
She confirmed that Robert Jr.’s wife, Alexiana Cosby, “also went to rehab. And you know what? She’s still in there.”
Mary told WWHL host Andy Cohen that Robert Jr., 21, “is doing so good. I am so proud of him. So proud of him.”
Mary Cosby Says Her Son Is ‘Steady’ After ‘Heavy’ Season of ‘RHOSLC’
While Real Housewives is known for its laugh-out-loud levity and over-the-top drama, Mary and her son shared a genuinely serious moment together on the November 27 episode of the Salt Lake City franchise. Robert Jr., whom she shares with husband Robert Cosby, came clean about his substance abuse and mental health struggles, explaining that sometimes he feels like “life is just chicken unseasoned.”
“When I get high, it’s like adding seasoning to it,” he said while Mary listened to him through tears.
Robert Jr. said that he was introduced to Xanax at a party, then “started buying it. Then, I started doing Xanax with Acid and then Molly with Xanax. I really like Xanax so I mix it with everything. Xanax and cocaine.”
Robert Jr. continued, “You know the regular 30mg Oxys? I noticed … this was, like, a turning point for me. I was taking 10 at once and I couldn’t even feel it.”
RHOSLC’s Heather and Meredith React to Mary’s Sad Moment With Robert Jr.
Mary started crying, telling her son that she would never “judge” him.
“I can try and help you but you have to help yourself because I am not going to support it,” she told him on camera. “Do you accept that you’re having a problem?”
Robert Jr. also told Mary that “wanted to die” at one point in his life and Mary was the “only reason” he didn’t commit suicide.
“I just felt like a stain,” he said. “I just felt like this world wasn’t for me.”
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That moment struck a chord with Bravo fans, including actress Bridget Everett, who appeared as a WWHL guest alongside Mary on Wednesday.
“I just felt like everything you said was the right thing to say to him,” Everett, 52, told Mary. “He could not have dreamt for better support.”
Cosby told Cohen, 56, and Everett that her conversation with Robert Jr. “wasn’t planned. … We just came together, Robert and I, and I said, ‘We’re gonna do this because we’re gonna help someone.’”
“He didn’t plan what he was gonna say and I didn’t plan. And I just said what I felt,” she added, crying as Cohen held her hand.
‘RHOSLC’ Recap: Mary Cosby’s Son Robert Details Substance Abuse Struggles
Days before that RHOSLC episode aired, Mary offered an update on Robert Jr. while chatting with Us Weekly exclusively.
“He’s steady, which I think is good,” she shared. “It’s a heavy topic. But for me, because it all just came at once on me and I didn’t expect it, but I’m taking it day by day.”
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City airs on Bravo Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
