Tami Roman Opens Up About Body Dysmorphic Disorder Diagnosis & New Show

Photo: Getty Images

Tami Roman is the host of a new VH1 show: Unfaithful: Caught in the Act.

In an exclusive interview with iHeartRadio personality Jazmyn Summers, the former Basketball Wives star dished on the new reality show, which is all about catching cheaters in the act. Roman additionally discussed her marriage, her thoughts on plastic surgery, her health, specifically being diagnosed with Body Dysmorphic Disorder, and so much more.

Keep scrolling to read our full interview.

TELL US ABOUT UNFAITHFUL CAUGHT IN THE ACT.

When they approached me to do the show, I was like, 'What are we doing that's different?' When they said it's having the suspicious lover sit down with their partner's other lover, I was like, 'I'm sold' because in my previous marriage there was infidelity. I would've loved to have the opportunity to sit down with some of those women to just find out why.  You know he's married or maybe you don't know he is married, but whatever it is, I would've loved the ability to have a conversation to compare notes, if you will.  That element stuck out to me because that would've saved me a lot of heartache.
We work through why women or men make these decisions that really are detrimental to them and detrimental to a family, detrimental to a couple.

WHAT IS ONE OF THE MOMENTS THAT STANDS OUT TO YOU THE MOST?

A moment that definitely made me get emotional was when Tracy, who's one of the young ladies on the first episode, pulled out her sonogram with her twins that she had lost. She had miscarried, and for me, who has suffered three miscarriages, that sent me somewhere. I had to take a break while filming and then return to it. This show is causing me to dig deep into a lot of different things.

Photo: Getty Images

YOU’VE BEEN DRAGGED ON THE INTERNET FOR BEING "TOO THIN," AND MANY HAVE QUESTIONED YOUR HEALTH. WHAT’S THE REAL STORY?  

I'm extremely thin because that's what I felt I had to be in order to be beautiful And every day is a challenge. Someone else might get up and stand naked in front of, the mirror and go, oh my goodness like I could pinch [some fat] right here and then go on about their business. But if I can pinch, that becomes a whole mission of like, I've gotta lose it. That's still now. And people have seen my weight, fluctuate up and down, heavier, thinner, even on Unfaithful you'll see me heavy and then thin again. Its an obsession for me.
Every day is a challenge. If I see my clavicle and I see bones that's great to me but to you, you'd be like, Tammy, you need to eat something. I have Body Dysmorphic Disorder. I didn't realize that I had it for most of my life until I was diagnosed with it in 2008. It's either hereditary, or a traumatic event that you go through that alters your mind to perceive things a certain way. For me, when I was 13, I was trying to model and I went to an agency and I thought I was perfect. I was thin.  I was tall and that lady basically annihilated my self-esteem. That's why I got my mouth wired shut, and I was already thin.

HAVE YOU GOTTEN ANY PLASTIC SURGERY TO ACHIEVE A CERTAIN BODY IMAGE?

I did my butt because I got so thin that there was nothing there. It'S like you’re always in search of what perfection is to you as you see yourself. That's what the disorder is.

Photo: Getty Images

SWITCHING GEARS, YOU ARE MARRIED TO THE HANDSOME REGGIE YOUNGBLOOD, WHO IS 17 YEARS YOUR JUNIOR. YOU’VE BEEN PUBLIC ABOUT YOUR STRUGGLE TO HAVE A CHILD TOGETHER. WHERE ARE YOU ALL WITH THAT NOW?

Knowing that he hadn't had any children, and I have two beautiful daughters. I really wanted to be able to give that to him, myself, not with a surrogate. And that's why I kept trying. Ultimately, the doctors were like, because of my age and my diabetes and health reasons, it just wouldn't be healthy for me to keep doing it. So we froze the eggs and we were looking for a surrogate and then I got busy and I couldn't be a part of that process.  
There was a clip where [I told him] we could take a break so that he can go have a baby. But I wasn’t talking about him being with another woman. I feel like picking a surrogate is a lengthy process and you've gotta be invested. And I wanted him to take the time to go and invest in that, to pick the right person, to put my eggs over there and let that person be the person. And he ultimately said, no, I don't wanna do any of that. If it's not you, then I'm good which is another testament to him.

AS YOU'VE ALLUDED TO, YOU AND REGGIE HAVE QUITE A STRONG RELATIONSHIP. WHAT’S THE SECRET?

I just think we're very honest with each other. From the minute we met each other, it's just been real genuine conversations and just being like brutally honest with each other. He lets me know what he doesn't like. I let him know what I don't like, and then we make a decision to either change or work through it. And we have a good time together. We’re each other's best friends and there are no secrets.

Photo: Getty Images

You can catch Jazmyn's entire conversation with Tami on Youtube on August 4.

Get the latest news 24/7 on The Black Information Network. Listen now on the iHeartRadio app or click HERE to tune in live.


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