Phaedra Parks Reveals Why She Really Ended Her Marriage to Apollo Nida: "It Was Madness Everyday"

Real Housewives of Atlanta star enlists the help of a famous preacher’s daughter

By Mike Vulpo Mar 23, 2015 1:00 AMTags
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Everybody knows Phaedra Parks' relationship with Apollo Nida was far from perfect.

But on Sunday's Real Housewives of Atlanta, viewers got a deeper look into what really made the Southern Belle pull the plug on a marriage she once thought would last forever.

"It was just madness all the time. It was madness everyday," Phaedra explained to Sarah Jakes who happens to be the daughter of Bishop T.D. Jakes. "It was never a peaceful night sleep. It was nonstop. For the first time in years, I have peace."

Apollo, who is currently serving an eight-year prison sentence in Kentucky after pleading guilty to fraud in federal court, wasn't exactly a model citizen before marrying Phaedra. After all, he was incarcerated for six years between 2003 and 2009 for car theft charges.

But despite the past, Phaedra had high hopes that her man had grown for the better.

"I married him because I thought he was a changed man. I married him because I knew he loved me," she told divorce attorney Ronne Kaplan. "Some people do change their lives and make a difference and I thought he was that person but obviously he wasn't."

Instead, the mother of two described a man who was out of control before he ultimately entered prison to serve his sentence.

Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

"He began to change. We got to a point where there wasn't a meeting of the minds anymore," she explained. "Not only is he leaving me, he's leaving a trail of madness that I need to clean up."

She added, "Maybe he was conning me the whole time."

Real Housewives of Atlanta airs Sunday nights at 8 p.m. only on E!

(E! and Bravo are part of the NBCUniversal family)