Credit: Ralph Bavaro/Bravo
Ariana Madix reacted to Tom Sandoval being booed by the audience during their Vanderpump Rules panel at BravoCon earlier this month.
As she and Katie Maloney, 36, looked back on the outburst of fans, admitting that the fan convention brought a “feral” and “toxic energy” to Las Vegas, Ariana, 38, first shared how her experience on Dancing With the Stars, as well as her partner, Pasha Pashkov, 37, helped her better learn how to cope with her anxiety.
“Every time before we perform, I’m, like, incredibly nervous,” Ariana admitted to Life & Style at the November 14 taping of DWTS. “I’m out here, like, shaking my hands, trying to do deep breathing or whatever. And even though I feel that, somehow it still comes together. So I think that that’s something that I’m learning – that I can feel that way, but that doesn’t mean everything is going to fall apart. I can trust myself.”
According to Ariana, she is a “very anxious person.” However, having to push through each dance from week to week has taught her a valuable lesson.
“I think that it translates in the sense that I can just breathe through it and keep going,” she explained. “I can trust myself to handle it.”
Helping her do just that is partner Pasha, who Ariana said helps her feel confident.
“Even after dress rehearsal [on Tuesday], it was like, ‘Oh that went great,’ and I was nervous [but Pasha was] just like, ‘That’s all I want. You don’t have to do more. You can just do what you just did,’” she shared.
Days prior, as she and Katie spoke on the red carpet at BravoCon, they were asked about the boos Sandoval, 40, received.
“BravoCon always brings this kind of…” Ariana began to PEOPLE.
“Feral energy!” Katie replied. “People go buck wild, it’s crazy.”
After Ariana then mentioned the “crossover show hookups and panel drama,” Katie said people love to stir the pot at the event.
“I don’t know what it is — it’s a collective toxic energy that everyone already has on their own shows that comes together,” she noted.
“[And] that’s what makes BravoCon so fun!” Ariana laughed.
As Pump Rules fans may have seen, Sandoval attempted to enjoy his time at BravoCon, even telling the audience that it felt “good to be” there” as their boos continued.
“It’s to be expected,” Ariana reasoned of the audience’s reaction to her ex-boyfriend.
During the panel event, Sandoval admitted that when it came to his affair with Rachel “Raquel” Leviss, 29, he had regrets.
“Yes, of course, I would have done things differently. [But] I can’t change what happened,” he added.
And, when asked why he didn’t avoid the event — and the fans’ wrath — he explained, “I’d rather stand here and face it.”
Vanderpump Rules season 11 is set to premiere on Bravo in January 2024.