Lauren Akins Says She and Husband Thomas Rhett ‘Struggle’ Like Any Other Couple

Thomas Rhett and wife Lauren Akins have been deemed by many to be “couple goals,” but according to Akins, they’re no different than many other married pairs. Speaking to PEOPLE, the Live in Love author explained that there is “a lot of pressure to portray that you have a perfect life, and family, and marriage, especially on social media and in the public eye.”

“I think the quicker that I’m able to just get on the table that, ‘Hey, we struggle just like every other married couple, we struggle just like every other parent, we struggle just like every other human,’ it takes that pressure and weight off our shoulders to have to be a certain way,” she said. “It gives the green light to be us.” Akins further opened up about her relationship with her husband in her new book, including the beginning of Rhett’s career in 2013 as Akins put her own job as a nurse on hold, the couple’s adoption process with eldest daughter, Willa Gray and their life as a family.

She also discussed the fact that she and Rhett go to marriage counseling, which has helped strengthen their relationship. “We still are staying in close contact with our counselor, Beth,” Akins said. “COVID has changed things a little bit, but if we ever feel like there’s something we need to talk through with a third party, or even just to touch base and check-in, we’re texting or calling Beth. It’s something that we still say is crucial to a marriage, some form of counseling or a third party. It’s just a place where you can learn more about yourself and learn more about your spouse and really learn how to communicate better and clearer. It’s been so, so good. We just really love it.”

The 30-year-old said that writing her book “felt like therapy” and that she hopes readers will be able to relate to her experiences. “My hope is that people can find themselves in the pages, and they’ll be able to realize that deep down, every human heart has the same wants and feelings,” the mom of three shared. “We want to be known, we want to be loved [and] we want to have people to love. I hope that those walls will be pulled down.”

“I think it’s easy to look at filters in the world, and social media, and look at love that seems to be perfect,” she continued. “But that’s not reality, and it’s a lot to try to live up to. So I hope that people can see the imperfections of our life and find themselves in those imperfections, and feel a sense of hope, encouragement and ultimately love.”