Katie Maloney Reveals Why She Split From Tom Schwartz: ‘It Was Building Up’ For Months

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Katie Maloney said ending things with Tom Schwartz ‘was the hardest and most painful decision’ she’s made. She also revealed how the exes are focused on ‘becoming friends.’

Katie Maloney, 35, opened up about her split from husband Tom Schwartz, 39, on the latest episode of her podcast, You’re Gonna Love Me. The Vanderpump Rules star explained that it’s “been a little over a month” since the pair “separated” before they publicly announced their split March 15. “It’s been emotional for sure,” Katie said. “But it’s also been in ways peaceful and loving. The transition is so far going really well. We do still live together in our house and we are just trying to navigate these steps together and really work on becoming friends.”

Katie, who got emotional at times during the podcast episode, elaborated more on what led to the breakup. “There wasn’t some kind of crazy fight that resulted in this,” she explained. “It was my decision which was probably the hardest and most painful decision I’ve ever had to make. But the best and only way I can describe it is waking up inside of my life and having this voice that just became louder and louder.”

The Bravo star continued, “Ultimately I just wasn’t happy. For a long time I sat with it and I thought about it and I didn’t talk to anyone.” Katie explained that she “didn’t prioritize” her happiness and “was not fulfilled” while married to Tom. “That’s just what everything inside of me was saying, I thought it got to a point where I just felt like I was going to burst,” she said. “For months, it was building up. I felt just disconnected. I felt like I was drifting further and further away.”

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Looking towards her future, Katie confidently said that she feels “very strongly that I’m doing the right thing.” “But it doesn’t make it easer,” she noted. “It’s really hard not to think about all of the best times and your wedding. But when everything else inside of you is telling you that you deserve more, you have to listen to that.”

The former couple were married for six years, and together for 12, before Katie ended things. Tom — who has been seen still wearing his wedding ring post-split — has insisted that he’s to blame for the relationship failing and not his BFF Tom Sandoval. “[T]hat’s all on me,” he told a photographer in L.A. on March 16, per E! News. “I wish I had a scapegoat, but that’s all on me.”

Meanwhile, Katie is ready to be single and remains hopeful about finding love. “She knows she’s young enough to completely start over and find someone who makes her happy,” a source close to the Bravolebrity EXCLUSIVELY told HollywoodLife. “A piece of her will always love Tom, but they really had grown apart over the years,” the insider added.