Sister Wives – 8 Ways Kody’s Caused “Trauma” In The Brown Family
While his wives aren't exempt from blame, Kody Brown is responsible for most of the turmoil on Sister Wives. How has Kody caused trauma?
- Kody Brown’s favoritism towards Robyn has caused trauma within the family, as his other wives and children feel mistreated and ignored.
- Kody’s refusal to give Janelle a voice and his fear of financial retribution shows abusive behavior and highlights his self-centered nature.
- Robyn’s manipulative actions, such as preventing Kody from spending time with his older sons, have caused tension and mistreatment within the family.
Kody Brown might feel bad for himself on Sister Wives season 18, but the family patriarch has caused trauma in his family many times. The father of eighteen previously had four wives: Meri Brown, Christine Brown, Janelle Brown, and Robyn Brown. However, Meri, Christine, and Janelle all left Kody, with Christine marrying David Woolley earlier this year. The separations have caused a rift in the extended Brown family, but Kody is mostly to blame.
The Brown family began to crumble during COVID-19 when Robyn used the pandemic to force monogamy on Kody. While taking precautions was necessary, Robyn exacerbated what was already true: Kody favored Robyn and her children. His blatant favoritism trickled down to affect his children and has undoubtedly caused trauma within the family. While Kody seems eager to blame anyone but himself, it’s clear the Brown family patriarch is at the center of the troublesome dynamics. What are some of the ways Kody has traumatized his family?
8, Gwendlyn Thinks Kody’s Favoritism Hurt The Family
According to the latest episode of Sister Wives season 15, Gwendlyn Brown, a biological daughter of Kody and Christine, claimed their familial woes came from Kody’s apparent preference toward Robyn and her kids. ET quoted Gwendlyn as saying, “Where’s the trauma coming from? Because dad prefers them.”
Gwendlyn has a point– her mother, Janelle, and Meri didn’t leave Kody because things were only okay; they went because they were utterly mistreated and ignored in their relationships in favor of Robyn. That blatant favoritism will trickle down to the kids no matter what. Additionally, now that three of his wives have left him, Kody wants to avoid them, inadvertently ignoring his other children.
7, Kody Won’t Give Janelle A Voice (She Doesn’t Feel Safe)
Kody said onscreen that he couldn’t give Janelle a “safe” space to talk, which is a major red flag and seems abusive. Likely, he doesn’t want to allow Janelle to speak about her situation because it might make him look bad, but Kody usually does a good enough job of that himself. Additionally, as Janelle vacillates between separation and reconciliation, Kody doesn’t want to open the door to more arguing. He also seems increasingly fearful she will seek financial retribution.
6, Kody Let Robyn Cut Him Off From His Older Sons
Robyn’s manipulative skills with Kody are unmatched, and one of the most trauma-inducing actions she took was stopping Kody from spending time with his older sons during Christmas. She claims it was because she feared they would fight and ruin the holiday. Conveniently, Gabe and Garrison Brown are not Robyn’s children. Some of Kody’s adult children have called Robyn out for her blatant mistreatment of Christine, Meri, and Janelle’s children. Kody ignoring his other children is heartbreaking and will continue to cause problems in the family.
5, Kody Called His Own Kids “Jerks”
Always ready to defend Robyn when she plays the victim, Kody goes so far as to insult his children, particularly Gabe, Garrison, and Gwendlyn, on Sister Wives. According to ET, Kody said in a confessional, “All of you are just kind of jerks. I don’t want to be around you, and I’m tired of it,” and continued, “And I don’t want to call them. I don’t want to talk to them.” Even though the children he’s referring to are adults, they’re still his kids. Instead of taking responsibility for his family, he insults them.
4, Kody Missed Ysabel Brown’s Scoliosis Surgery
One of the last straws for Christine was Kody missing Ysabel Brown’s scoliosis surgery. Tensions between the Sister Wives reached a fever pitch in 2020 when Robyn manipulated Kody’s traveling between houses, citing the COVID-19 pandemic. Robyn used this time to essentially make Kody monogamous, and he was uncomfortable traveling to New Jersey, where Ysabel’s surgery would take place. While he suggested they postpone the surgery six months, Ysabel’s spinal curvature was getting worse by the day. Ultimately, Christine and Ysabel traveled alone, and Ysabel’s surgery was successful. However, Ysabel’s father should have been there for support.
3, Kody Sparked Estrangement Between Brown Siblings
Kody’s favoritism of Robyn has sparked estrangements between Robyn’s children and the kids from his three other marriages. Feuds have popped up between the siblings, with Breanna and Aurora Brown, Robyn and Kody’s kids, alleging that Savanah Brown, one of Janelle and Kody’s daughters, ignore each other at school. According to Today, Breanna is emotional about the strained relationship and admitted, “I kind of just feel shocked and confused and like she doesn’t care. I don’t know what the right word is. It kind of just broke my heart a little ’cause, you know, I grew up with her. I grew up with all of them.” It’s horrible that the ones who have been hurt the most by his behavior are Kody’s kids.
2, Kody Is Really Into Humiliating Meri Brown
Kody seems to have a special hatred for his first wife, Meri. During a meeting with Meri and Robyn, Kody flaunted a new ring, but he won’t tell Meri what it means. As she details her intentions to relocate to Utah, his flashy new jewelry seems to mock her as he fully commits to Robyn. Christine never does anything halfway, but Meri has seemed more hesitant to leave Kody despite his suggestion that she live in a barn on his property.
1, Janelle’s Stressed Out Due To Money Woes (He Says She Has “Assets”)
Kody denies he should be held accountable for Janelle’s financial problems, but Janelle admitted her having no money is why she stayed with Kody for so long in the first place. Janelle claims Kody and Robyn made her poor, and before the family was on reality TV, she and Kody were the primary breadwinners. Christine and Meri did most of the childrearing and housework in the early days, and Kody and Janelle worked. However, once Sister Wives and Robyn came into the picture, Janelle’s team spirit came back to bite her, and she now claims to have nothing. Kody’s trauma-inflicting actions seem to have no end.
