Celebrity

Olivia Culpo Admits to Struggling Financially After Nick Jonas Breakup: ‘Couldn’t Afford Groceries’

2015 Billboard Music Awards
LAS VEGAS, NV – MAY 17: Actress Olivia Culpo and singer Nick Jonas arrive at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards at MGM Garden Arena on May 17, 2015 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)

Olivia Culpo is opening up about her struggle to emotionally and financially recover from the end of her relationship with Nick Jonas. The model, 30, opened up about her former relationship with the Jonas Brothers star, 30, during the premiere episode of TLC’s The Culpo Sisters, revealing that their breakup in 2015 after nearly two years together was a “very formative” experience for her.

Looking back on the early days of their relationship, Culpo recalled, “I moved to L.A. with him. I had no brand, no money and I was in love. That was great right, but when he broke up with me, I was kind of left with no sense of identity.” She continued, “My whole identity was in him, which is a very common story of a young person in love.”

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Culpo revealed she even thought there were wedding bells in their future. “I thought we were going to get married, I thought all the things,” she shared, “and I just remember night after night looking up at my ceiling in my apartment that I couldn’t afford thinking to myself how am I going to pay my rent.” She confessed that at the time, she “couldn’t even afford my groceries,” adding, “It was a serious, pivotal moment for me, but it was something that taught me that you can’t give up.”

Since their breakup, both Culpo and Jonas have moved on โ€“ the model with San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey and the “Jealous” singer with wife Priyanka Chopra. Culpo couldn’t help but gush over McCaffrey in The Culpo Sisters debut. “His favorite version of me is zit cream, hair down and no makeup,” she said of the athlete.

After also dating NFL players Danny Amendola and Tim Tebow, as well as Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte, Culpo told Entertainment Tonight earlier this month that McCaffrey was an exception to her “no athletes ever again” dating rule. “He’s just the best, I feel like he is really everything that I could ever ask for,” she said of McCaffrey. “So I never have to worry about anything. I think that was the reason why I didn’t want to date an athlete, no offense, because there is a reputation there.”