"I never meant to come off cold & careless": Martina Navratilova's wife Julia Lemigova gets emotional about her feud with RHOM co-star Guerdy Abraira

Martina Navratilova’s wife, Julia Lemigova, has shared an emotional clarification regarding the ongoing controversy with her Real Housewives of Miami co-star Guerdy Abraira. The two were once close friends, but their relationship has taken a hit in recent times.

The drama began in the premiere episode of The Real Housewives of Miami Season 7, where Lemigova announced over a Zoom call that she and Navratilova were adopting two boys. She wanted to share the news with the group personally before it became public.

What happened next sparked the fallout as Guerdy’s Zoom call cut off just before she could hear the news. When she later asked for a new link to rejoin, Lemigova told her to watch it in the news instead. Guerdy later reportedly experienced a cold reception from both Lemigova and Martina Navratilova at Lisa Hochstein’s Old Hollywood-themed birthday party for her boyfriend, Jody Glidden.

Julia Lemigova has now come forward with her side of the story, admitting that while her behavior may not have been justified, a lot was going on behind the scenes. She explained that the adoption wasn’t finalized at the time via an Instagram Story on Tuesday, June 17.

“My beautiful souls, this season, you've seen a different side of me, one even I've struggled to fully explain. The truth is, just before we began filming, something life-changing happened; I was given the chance to welcome two incredible boys into my life. It was sudden, emotional, and felt deeply destined. But here's the part no one saw: the adoptions weren't finalized. Not yet,” she wrote. “I was living in an emotional in-between, loving these boys fiercely while navigating legal uncertainty and keeping so much of it quiet. It was overwhelming. Beautiful, yes, but also fragile, sacred, and stressful beyond words, which is why I was so cautious about sharing anything about them in writing,” she added.

Julia Lemigova went on to address the Instagram Story Guerdy Abraira had shared, which included texts between them right after the Zoom call. She explained that her messages came from a place of wanting to protect her personal information, as she and Guerdy weren’t particularly close at the time.

“When moments came up, like sending that strange message you all saw, I didn't always show up as my most present or thoughtful self. And when it came to Guerdy, the truth is, at the time, we weren't in the close, heart-connected place we had once been. Our friendship had shifted a bit. Not in anger, not in conflict, just life pulling us in different directions,” Martina Navratilova's wife wrote. “So when she reached out, I was so wrapped in protecting my own emotional chaos, I fumbled. I never meant to come off cold, careless, or bizarre. I was simply in a storm of my own,” she added.

@julialemigova via Instagram Stories

"We are over the moon" - Martina Navratilova & wife Julia Lemigova on adopting two boys

Julia Lemigova and Martina Navratilova pictured together at Wimbledon 2023 | Image Source: Getty

Martina Navratilova and her wife, Julia Lemigova, expanded their family in 2024 by adopting two young boys. On August 14, the couple confirmed the news through a spokesperson, asking for privacy as they focused on settling in as a family.

"We are over the moon, recognizing the challenges and the rewards for everybody," Navratilova said in a statement.

Their adoption journey was initially put on hold after Navratilova was diagnosed with stage 1 throat and breast cancer in early 2023. Fortunately, by June that year, she was declared cancer-free, and the couple resumed their plans by December.

Edited by Pritha Ghosh