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Teresa Giudice made waves recently when she decided to exit Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test early. Now, the Real Housewives of New Jersey star is opening up about how this decision impacted her. Plus, she also revealed her uncharacteristic response to being cheated on by an ex.
Regarding Special Forces, Teresa, 53, was one of multiple Bravo stars to be selected to compete. The others include Gia Giudice, 24, Eva Marcille, 40, and Brittany Cartwright, 36. It’s also worth noting that Paige DeSorbo was asked to appear on the hit Fox series but declined.
During a recent episode of Special Forces, Teresa opened up about becoming violent after learning that an ex had cheated on her. This came as the contestants were preparing to box each other. The RHONJ star said in a confessional, “Everyone thinks that I am so tough and this mean person, which I am really not, but I do fly off the handle if you really piss me off.”
Teresa then provided an example. She said, “My ex-boyfriend, he cheated on me. So I knocked the bitch out.” Regarding how she views her actions today, the mom of four admitted, “I feel so bad now. I should have knocked him out.”
Regarding her early exit from Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, Teresa revealed the pain that came after to PEOPLE. For context, her exit came during the previously mentioned challenge because she couldn’t bring herself to watch Gia fight.
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According to Teresa, “There was no way that I would be able to sit there and watch my daughter get punched as a mom.” She then said, “I would’ve probably definitely jumped in and I knew… And I didn’t want to show my daughter me actually fighting either.”
Teresa added, “I’m sure Gia would’ve did the same for me or maybe not. Maybe she would’ve restrained herself because we were on Special Forces. But I just didn’t want to show my daughter. I didn’t want to see her getting hit and I didn’t want her to see me fighting.”
In regard to leaving the show, she shared, “It took everything in me to leave, it really did. But I knew she was going to be okay. I know my kid, so I knew she was going to be fine.”
Still, Teresa admitted that she became incredibly emotional after walking away from the competition. She said she “cried that whole night.” She explained, “I cried going home in the airport. Even when I got home, I was crying. My husband [Luis Ruelas] was like, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ And I was just so upset.”
The Housewives OG continued, “I wasn’t myself until Gia came home. I really wasn’t. Even Luis said, he’s like, ‘I feel like you’ve changed.’ He’s like, ‘What happened to you?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, I was… It took a lot out of me. It really did.'”
Teresa also revealed that she considered returning to Special Forces after getting home from Morocco. She said, “I was having second thoughts, but then, like I said, we had discussions and there was a lot of stuff that we talked about. And so I was thinking, my mom instinct, I’m always a mom first, and I always want to try to set good examples for my children. So, that’s what always comes in my mind. I’m always a mom first.”
Additionally, Teresa stated that Gia understood why she felt the need to leave the show early and that they had an “amazing” reunion after her time on the show was also up. She then said, “I’m so grateful for the experience to do this with Gia. It is something that we both will never forget. Something that she’ll always remember. I’ll always remember.”
Special Forces airs on Thursdays on Fox.