Iyanla says Laura Govan is known for her wild behavior on reality TV and her ugly divorce from ex-NBA player Gilbert Arenas.
“Her ongoing custody battle is holding her back. Laura’s behavior on-screen and in real life has discredited her name and polluted her reputation.” – Iyanla
Laura has her first meeting with Iyanla and accuses her sister Gloria of sleeping with Gilbert.
Laura, age 36, walks into her first meeting with Iyanla and things seem to go well at first. Iyanla asks her why she did “Basketball Wives LA.” She says, “I was angry with Gilbert [Arenas].” However, she wasn’t pleased with how she didn’t tell her story the way she wanted to. However, she hasn’t been able to let go of her appearance on the show.
Iyanla tells Laura that her reputation “stinks.” When Gilbert comes back up, Iyanla tells her, “not to call him an ex. Call him the father of your children.”
Laura tells Iyanla her relationship with Gilbert turned bad once she learned he allegedly slept with her sister, Gloria Govan. However, she remained with him so she could keep the things that came with being with a professional athlete.
Right now she’s still going back and forth in a nasty legal battle with Gilbert.
When Laura says he can’t have the kids, Iyanla says, “give them to him.” She then schools Laura on the fact that she still wants to keep control over him.
Iyanla brings in Laura’s parents.
Laura parents join her on the couch. Both of them feel as her Laura’s life is a mess. Laura’s mom calls Gilbert Arenas “a manipulator.” However, she does not believe Gloria slept with Gilbert. When this is revealed, Laura tells her mom that she is angry.
Her father doesn’t believe it either.
“You don’t want to believe things that are real.” -Laura
Iyanla turned her attention to Laura’s father, Michael. “I believe all women marry their fathers.” Iyanla tells Michael that his behavior as a father led Laura to Gilbert. Michael says they argue constantly about Gilbert.
“Laura hung up the phone on me the last time we spoke.” -Michael
Laura then interjects and says that Michael did not believe her when she told Michael that she was molested by someone he knew at age 13.
“And you said, ‘Well, what do you want me to do?’” – Laura
Michael began to speak over Iyanla when he tried to ask him why he said that. Laura tells them that she tried to tell the both of them after it happened but they did not believe her.
“They don’t want to believe what I feel is real.” -Laura
Her parents deny not believing Laura was molested, and instead say they are denying that she told them when she was 13. Instead, they claim Laura didn’t tell them she was molested until she was grown.
Iyanla reiterates to Michael that his behavior has enabled her to end up in the terrible situation with Gilbert.
When Iyanla tells both parents that Laura should give up the kids to Gilbert, they both emphatically say no.
“If she makes that decision, that’s her decision. You worry about your kids. Let her worry about hers. How about that!?” -Iyanla
Michael reiterates, “That ain’t gonna happen lady.” However, Laura says in court, “His money is kicking my a**.”
When Iyanla reiterates that his money is a reason to give the kids to Gilbert, Michael leans in towards Iyanla angrily.
“Now… you think that this would be a good decision for her to give those kids to Gilbert Arenas?” -Michael
“You let your child be with him and if you can’t defend your child from him, you don’t get the right to tell her how to handle her children. The mere fact that she had four children with him is as much a testimony about you as it is about herself.” -Iyanla
Michael and Iyanla keep going back and forth towards the end of their first session.
Iyanla and Michael sit down one on one.
Iyanla has her next session with Michael exclusively. Michael says Laura is just like him. “Hardheaded and stubborn.” Iyanla and Michael discuss her relationship with Gilbert.
Laura said she looked at Gilbert as a competition with her sister Gloria and her father doesn’t seem to be bothered by that.
Iyanla and Michael discussed how Michael would get home late at night and would wake up his daughters if they did not do their chores.
“I ran the house.” -Michael
They then talk how Laura is perceived as a “loose cannon” in the media. Michael thinks she has to be aggressive and he teaches all his children to be aggressive so they can get the things they want out of life.
When the topic of how he reacted when her molestation came up is discussed, Michael said, “She lied about the way she told me.”
Michael finally admits that he does need to learn to be less stern with himself and the people he cares about.
Iyanla shows Laura how messed up her situation really is.
Iyanla later moves their conversation to a kitchen. Iyanla is using baking a cake to show the layers of issues to Laura. Iyanla is using ingredients that do not smell good when combined together. This exercise is showing her that her issues combined don’t look so good.
“I make the s*** look pretty.” -Laura
“Your kids don’t have to go to a private school. You don’t have to have a make up artist and a manager and a publicist. That’s making the s*** look pretty.” -Iyanla
Iyanla lets her know that she doesn’t need the extra, superficial things in her life.
She then asks Laura what did your father teach you about men, Laura says, “take the s***.”
Lastly, she then tells Laura to return for the next meeting tomorrow “looking like a real mother, not like a reality star or a celebrity.”
Laura returns for another session with Iyanla ready to fight.
Laura meets with Iyanla the next day and flat-out disagreed with her statement at the end their previous session.
“I felt like you judging me is offensive. I am a great mother…” -Laura
Iyanla then tells her she doesn’t know herself and she doesn’t need to be caught in how she appears on the outside.
Later on, Laura reveals that she feels Gilbert is trying to set her up, make her homeless and take her children. Iyanla tells her she shouldn’t have to fight like this anymore. This is a result of having to fight her parents to believe that she was raped at 13.
When Iyanla tells her to “give up the fight,” Laura begins to cry heavily.
“You’re not gonna lose the kids. He doesn’t want them… He wants to take you down!” -Iyanla
As Laura breaks down, Iyanla begins to begins to build her back up and lets her know she doesn’t need this image.
“You can sell doughnut holes on the corner and you’d be okay. You are enough.” -Iyanla
Laura has one more sit down with her parents and Iyanla.
Iyanla shows Laura the video of Laura defending herself, contradicting herself from earlier when she accused Iyanla of telling her, “she needed a real job.”
After this, Iyanla forces Laura to sit directly across from Michael and express her pain. She then tells Michael about their relative molesting her and Gilbert sleeping with her sister Gloria.
“I ask you protect me from everything. I want your support. I feel like I am by myself… I feel like a lost little girl. – Laura
Iyanla steps in and reinforces Laura’s experience.
“All she knows how to do is fight. If she keeps fighting him, she will lose.” – Iyanla
Then she brings up the cake. When Iyanla and Laura mention the ingredients that would be terrible to eat together, Michael says, “at least it looks good. Iyanla quickly tells him that mentality is the problem.
Iyanla reiterates to Michael that Laura needs his support. Michael agrees and says he will work on this.
The all hug it out at the end and it seems that everything is on the upswing.
However, at the end of the show, it is revealed that she hasn’t talked to her parents since their sessions ended. She also hasn’t made any strides in her co-parenting/custody battle with Gilbert Arenas. However she doesn’t feel the need to have the perfect-looking image anymore.
Interestingly enough, once the show ended, Laura’s sister Gloria began to be dragged on her Instagram account. This is due to Laura’s claim that Gilbert slept with Gloria.
Check out some of the comments below:
I would feel bad for Laura but then I remember how much of a color struck idiot her and Gilbert are. So meh!
Cosign. I guess we’re supposed to forget about all of that.
What is going on with some of these sisters nowadays? Where’s the loyalty?
I don’t even know where to begin. But I will say that Laura and her entire family could benefit from therapy.
Just a mess all around. Gloria is really foul though. How do you sleep with your sister’s man though? That’s just evil.
Shaunie is somewhere smirking.
Sad. All of them.
I will take this with a grain of salt. She could be just saying this cause her sister is in what seems to be a happy relationship and her ass is just miserable and lonely looking for attention and sympathy. And possibly revenge cause they never really got along as sisters.