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Mama June’s Money Woes After Spending $1 Million on Drugs in a Year: I’m ‘Penny Pinching’
Learning from her mistakes. June “Mama June” Shannon revealed that she has set a strict budget for herself after she spent nearly $1 million on drugs in one year.
“Now I’ve gone back to being like penny pinching,” June, 43, told the Daily Mail on Wednesday, May 10.
The reality star added that her husband, Justin Stroud, tells her that she’s a “money hoarder.”
In March 2021, June revealed she spent $900,000 on drugs during the worst point in her addiction.
“I would say the last year of our addiction, [we spent] probably a good $900,000,” she told Access Hollywood at the time. “So much money was sent to our dope man.”
The Here Comes Honey Boo Boo alum added that she “went into rehab with $1.75 to [her] name” and “came out with nothing.”
June and her then-boyfriend, Geno Doak, were arrested in March 2019 on suspicion of felony possession of a controlled substance for crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia. Following the arrest, she took a plea deal and agreed to serve 100 hours of community service. She has also turned her life around and has made her sobriety a priority.
While speaking to the Daily Mail, the mother of four reflected on who she was during the lowest part of her life. “Girl, what the hell are you doing spending all that damn money?” she said.
“I think about a lot of things I could do with that money,” June continued about all of the money she spent on drugs. “My husband tells me all the time that I can’t dwell on it.”
While she openly regrets her past mistakes, June admitted she doesn’t remember much from that point in her life. “Just bits and pieces and stuff, but the biggest, stupidest thing I’ve done is spend that much money on drugs,” she said.
June discussed her spending habits one week after she and Justin, 35, exclusively spoke to In Touch about how her daughters Alana Thompson, Anna Cardwell, Lauryn Efird and Jessica Shannon feel about their stepdad.
“It’s a work in progress just like it is for every family,” Justin told In Touch about how he and his wife’s children get along now.
The couple legally tied the knot in March 2022 at a Georgia courthouse, though exchanged vows for a second time on February 18. Although Alana “Honey Boo Boo,” 17, Anna “Chickadee,” 28, Lauryn “Pumpkin,” 23, and Jessica “Chubbs,” 26, were all present for their mother’s second wedding ceremony, Alana and Lauryn have expressed their skepticism about Justin.
“I didn’t feel any ill will toward the girls at the beginning because I want them to be, you know, hesitant about new people that they meet,” Justin explained. “You know, you always [have got to] protect you at the end of the day and protect yourself. So, that guard always has to be up, you know, and peel that onion layer back one at a time and get to know that person. And from what it looks like, it’s been moving in the right direction. So, hopefully we can just keep it moving that way.”
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