Courtesy of Mackenzie Edwards/Instagram/Hamilton County Sheriff
Mackenzie Edwards Returns to Social Media Following Ryan Edwards’ Arrest: ‘Struggles Are Heavy’
Getting spiritual. Mackenzie Standifer has returned to Instagram for the first time since her husband and Teen Mom alum Ryan Edwards was arrested on February 10, 2023, and charged with violating a protective order after he accused her of cheating.
“Just because I carry it well, doesn’t mean it’s not heavy,” read an affirmation about needing “God’s help” which Mackenzie, 26, posted in an Instagram Story on Thursday, February 16. She highlighted the line, “I need to call and seek His name every day.”
The quote continued, “People don’t know everything. Others don’t even have an idea what I’m going through, but God knows. He knows every detail and I believe He will carry me through. These struggles are heavy, but there’s victory in the Lord.” Mackenzie’s last full Instagram post was on August 26, 2022, where she joked in a reposted TikTok video about being “dramatic.”
Ryan, 35, accused Mackenzie of adultery on February 9, taking to Instagram to publicly shame his wife for “[sleeping] with anything that looks at [her].” In the same post, Ryan shared a photo of his wife wearing only a leather jacket with her bare skin underneath and wrote, “If you guys have never seen a spineless slut this is one.”
Later that day, Ryan was served with an order of protection by Hamilton County Sheriff’s deputies and ordered to immediately vacate a home near Harrison Bay State Park in Tennessee, after Mackenzie reported the social media harassment to authorities.
The mother of three – Mackenzie shares son Hudson with ex Zachary Stephens and Ryan has another child with ex Maci Bookout – also told authorities that Ryan had contacted her dad, Bob Standifer, which was another violation of the protective order.
Prior to his arrest, Hamilton County, Tennessee, police officers claimed that Ryan made the threats against Mackenzie during a disturbing phone call, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by In Touch. She also told authorities that the pair had a “history of domestic violence issues,” according to the legal document.
“You better f–king lie to the dudes who come and ask you, they’re gonna come and ask you at work,” Ryan said during the conversation with Mackenzie, which she recorded. He added, “I’ll take the f–king ass whooping.”
When she asked Ryan “Who’s coming to my work,” he replied, “The people in the club I f–king joined Friday. You know it’s a big no no to be married and have your wife disrespect you in that kind of way, but I said I’d take the ass whooping because I didn’t want the outcome to be [unintelligible] for you, and that ain’t fair.”
The former MTV star continued, “If you don’t tell me the truth right now, God you’re gonna f–king regret that.” When Mackenzie shot back, “I don’t want to be with you,” he replied, “Yeah, I hear you, but you… look… I guess you didn’t hear me. What’s about to happen to you is gonna be ugly.”
Mackenzie “interpreted this as a legitimate threat on her life,” the arrest affidavit stated. Ryan was taken into custody at his workplace, Bobcat of Chattanooga, and he had narcotics and drug paraphernalia on his person.
The former reality star previously hinted at divorcing Mackenzie in his first Instagram post in five years, which he shared on January 29, 2023. “I trusted you but now your words mean nothing to me, because your actions spoke the truth,” read a quote shared by the former MTV star in the since-deleted post. He wrote in the caption, “Your regret is coming … good lord showed me what I need but not what I wanted [sic].”
Ryan and Mackenzie share two children, son Jagger, born in October 2018, and daughter Stella, who arrived in January 2020. The couple was featured on Teen Mom 2 as part of Maci’s storyline, as she shares son, Bentley, 14, with Ryan. He went on to marry Mackenzie in a controversial episode of the show in 2018 before checking into rehab for drug addiction.
Mackenzie did not immediately respond to In Touch‘s request for comment
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