There’s more to Kimber Gardner’s aversion to having kids than just dirty diapers and sleepless nights. The Married at First Sight: Honeymoon Island star has a much deeper reason for not wanting to become a mom, she reveals in an exclusive preview of Tuesday’s episode.
In the clip of the Lifetime series (produced by Kinetic Content), Gardner and her Honeymoon Island match, Shannon Raddler, meet with experts Dr. Jessica Griffin and Pastor Cal Robertson about the major roadblock in their relationship — Gardner not wanting to have children after she gets married.
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“I don’t think I’m gonna get nowhere just me talking to her, so sitting in front of the experts and having this open dialogue will help me and Kimber,” Raddler tells the camera, hopeful.
When asked to break down her feelings about having kids for the experts, the Las Vegas resident explains, “It’s not that I hate kids, I love kids. I would honestly rather raise a kid that wasn’t mine.”
She continues that she would prefer “if [Raddler] already had a kid that was part of him and not me” but adds that “something about the idea of a miniature version of myself freaks me out.”
Asked what about the idea of her biological children is so disturbing, Gardner says, “I guess, just like, I was a not happy kid or teenager. I just wasn’t comfortable. And it would be really frustrating for me to have someone come home from school and look just like me and be just like me and go through this kind of negative feelings. I just hate the thought of it.”
She reveals that she suffered from depression until her early 20s, which she would be afraid to pass down to her kids.
It is a moment of vulnerability that seems to provide more understanding for Raddler, but also saddens him.
“Listening to Kimber just open up and tell me [about] her depression and she don’t want a mini her, it’s sad,” he tells the cameras after the meeting. “It’s like, mind-blowing to me, because she’s a wonderful person. If I had a mini Kimber, that would be a good thing.”
Will Raddler and Gardner be able to move forward in their relationship despite their differing ideals?
Married at First Sight: Honeymoon Island airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Lifetime, followed by Married at First Sight: Happily Ever After at 10 p.m. ET.
Photo credit: Lifetime
