‘Dancing With the Stars’ Alum Julianne Hough and Brooks Laich Went on ‘Couples Retreat’ a Month Before Marital Troubles

Trouble in paradise might have been quite literally brewing just a month before news of a rumored split broke for Dancing With the Stars alum, Julianne Hough and former NHL player, Brooks Laich. According to sources close to the couple, Hough and Laich headed out on a romantic couples getaway just days before speculation surfaced of the two reportedly taking a break from one another. Possibly indicative of struggles in their marriage, psychotherapists and sociologists have detailed in research how couples retreats can help to renew and strengthen a relationship.

Us Weekly sources allege that the ballroom dancer and former Los Angeles Kings player met up with Hough’s brother, Derek Hough and his girlfriend, Hayley Erbert at Nobu Hotel Los Cabos in Mexico for an exciting couples retreat this past November. The couples were also joined by Dancing With the Stars alum, Brooke Burke and her boyfriend Scott Rigsby who joined the pairs on the outing.

Per insiders, all three couples were content as lay out in the sun and sipped on refreshing margaritas near their private cabanas. It was later revealed that the group of friends also met up with Mario Lopez and his wife, Courtney, along with model, Erika Christensen and actress, Dania Ramirez for dinner at the famed Nobu restaurant.

Earlier this month, fans of the couple sparked worry after the former America’s Got Talent judge was spotted at NBC’s New Year’s Eve With Carson Daly on Dec. 31 without her wedding ring, followed by photos and videos on Instagram with a bare ring finger. The discovery from eagle-eyed fans was subsequently followed around the time her husband of almost three years shared an emotional message about a “new chapter” of life he was undergoing.

Laich sparked speculation when he shared his resolutions for 2020 in a lengthy Instagram post, revealing how he wanted to learn more about “intimacy and [his] sexuality.”

“I’m always working on becoming a better man, a better version of me, and it always starts with a vision of who that person is,” Laich wrote. “Knowing where I am, and where I want to go, are equally important.”

While nothing is confirmed for sure and the two have since been spotted together this past month with their wedding accessories in tow, a source told Us Weekly that the couple has “been in different places for work so they haven’t been able to spend as much time together these past few months.”

Meanwhile, sources tell PEOPLE that Hough’s personal evolution since first tying the knot in 2017 has in turn transformed her priorities as she now wants to become a “new age, free-spirit, no boundaries guru” and “is living her life by this sort of ‘no limits, no rules’ mantra” — one that allegedly “doesn’t vibe with being a wife.“

“It’s still complicated because she loves Brooks and she always will — she just thinks she is a completely different person than she was when she married him,” the source said. “She’s had a total awakening and transformation, and it’s ongoing, and she isn’t able or interested in going back to who she was.”

According to the source, Hough has made “real and deep changes” and is “spreading her wings now and no one, not Brooks or anyone, can really tie her down at this point.”

Photo credit: Getty Images