The honeymoon is over for the Married at First Sight couples. After spending their first days as a married couple in romantic bliss, the near strangers are moving in together — and they might be biting off more than they can chew.
In Tuesday’s all-new episode of the Lifetime series (produced by Kinetic Content), the couples realized they might be in for more than they bargained for, especially when it comes to taking on the problems of real life.
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For Bobby Dodd and Danielle Bergman, the newlyweds were confronting some pretty serious financial problems when the 30-year-old distributor account executive revealed she has more than $15,000 in credit card debt to her name.
The finance conversation came up when the newlyweds were discussing the $5,000 monthly stipend given to them by the show’s experts.
“This season, we decided to give the couples $5,000 a month, because we know that financial stress is one of the leading causes of divorce in this country,” Dr. Jessica Griffin told the cameras. “This will help them with the costs of merging their lives together. So we wanted to give them the best possible foundation that they could have going into their new marriages.”
But when Bergman and Dodd sat down to discuss where to put their $5,000 a month, he realized his new wife was a bit in over her head when it comes to money.
“I’m finding out that he’s a budget freak. I’m a budget freak, but I just don’t always follow the budget,” she told the cameras. “I have one, I just don’t follow it the way that I should. And because of that, I still have a few outstanding debts that I need to take care of. I’m just really hoping he doesn’t freak out.”
Dodd seemed confused to hear Bergman list her expenses, including $450 a year on waxing, but he really wasn’t expecting her $15,000 in credit card debt.
“She was sitting there, and she was like, ‘Yeah, I traveled a lot and it’s a ton of debt and it really sucks.’ And then that’s more a place where you’re like, ‘Well why’d you do that?’” he told the cameras.
While she reassured her husband that her debts weren’t his responsibility, he reminded her that part of being married is joining finances.
“Unfortunately, in a marriage, financial burden is financial burden,” he told her, adding to the cameras that he “didn’t want to use my savings to pay off someone else’s debt.”
In the end, however, Dodd decided he was dedicated to his new wife, debts and all.
“We’ll make it work,” he told her. “We’ll do what we need to make it work.”
Married at First Sight (produced by Kinetic Content) airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Lifetime.
Photo Credit: Lifetime
