5 things we learned from ReesaTeesa

If you don’t know who ReesaTeesa is, you should. She’s risen to (TikTok) fame after going viral for her 50-part series, “Who TF did I marry?” Yes, it’s 50 parts. MILLIONS of people all over the internet have listened for over six hours while this woman told the story of her pathologically lying, cheating ex-husband Legion. With these attention spans?? On this internet?? That should just tell you how riveting this story is. If you haven’t gotten on the ReesaTeesa train, it’s not too late. And there is so much to learn from it and from her. Here are our top 5 takeaways from her story.

1. What happens at home does not need to stay at home

ReesaTeesa mentions throughout the series that she kept what was going on in her relationship a secret from her friends and family based on her belief that what happens at home should stay at home. She also says she was embarrassed by some of the things that happened, and that made it hard to tell people what was going on. Which meant that her loving friends and family, who certainly would’ve helped her see that she needed to disentangle herself from this man, never even knew what was going on. Abuse thrives in darkness—if you’re unsure if what’s going on in your relationship is okay, bringing it out into the light allows people who love you to help you see your situation clearly.

2. It’s not your fault when someone else is a d*ck

You can tell that, at times, Reesa blames herself for what happened. But what someone else does, how they act, how they treat other people—that’s never your fault, that’s their fault. You’re not wrong for loving someone and wanting it to work. They’re wrong for taking that gift and stomping on it.

3. Get receipts

Now, Legion was a masterful liar. This is a man who would pretend to log into his bank account on his phone (tap tap tap), then turn the phone around and show Reesa his account information WHICH WAS ACTUALLY JUST A SCREENSHOT FROM GOOGLE IMAGES. Again, this is not ReesaTeesa’s fault—it would actually be extremely strange to assume someone was doing something so wild. We’re not saying be paranoid and get your partner’s bank login info, but we are saying that when you’re about to put an offer in on a house with someone, they should be willing to share ALL of their financial info with you. Even the offshore accounts. Especially the offshore accounts.

4. Be careful who you have a baby with

After the truth came out, friends and family (including Legion’s own family members) told Reesa how lucky it was that she didn’t have children with Legion. People say marriage is the ultimate commitment, but having a baby with someone is actually the ultimate commitment. You are signing up for that person to be in your life FOREVER. You can get divorced and choose to never see them again, but if there’s a child in the mix and both parents want to be involved, get ready to see that person’s face at every major event in your child’s life, at a minimum. Legion has given us a whole new love for birth control. Find a method that works for you.

5. Take notes

One of the greatest things about ReesaTeesa is that she remembers every last detail of what happened over the course of her relationship with Legion. That seems to be at least partly the case because she’s traumatized, but also she kept detailed audio diaries throughout the relationship as the weird things piled up. If something seems off to you, but you’re not sure what it is or you’re not sure you’re ready to take action, recording what’s going on is a great idea. It may help you figure out what’s happening faster, and if not, it may just help you secure a Netflix deal (fingers crossed for you, ReesaTeesa!).