Denise Richards is closing the door on what she describes as one of the hardest chapters of her life, even as the legal and financial fallout of her split from Aaron Phypers continues to play out in public. After a year marked by court battles, health worries and housing turmoil, she is trying to reclaim a sense of normalcy while acknowledging that the drama around her divorce is far from over.
Speaking candidly about the emotional toll of 2025, the actor and reality star has framed the past year as both “painful” and transformative, hinting at “truths being exposed” and a feeling of living “two different lives.” Her reflections, shared with fans and reinforced in multiple court filings, sketch a portrait of a woman determined to move forward even as the past keeps resurfacing.
‘One of the Most Painful Years’ and a Life Split in Two
Denise Richards has not tried to soften her description of the last year, calling 2025 “One of the Most Painful Years” of her life and admitting that the experience left her stripped down but “Finally Starting” to feel like herself again. In her own words, she will “never forget this year,” describing it as a period of shedding, like a “year of the snake,” in which she was forced to confront uncomfortable realities and let go of parts of her old life that no longer fit. That framing, of a brutal season that nonetheless clears space for something new, has become central to how she talks about the divorce and its aftermath, as she looks ahead to 2026 with cautious optimism anchored in the idea that the worst may finally be behind her, even if the paperwork is not.
Her reflections have also emphasized a sense of duality, with Denise saying she feels as if she has been living “two different lives” while navigating public scrutiny and private upheaval. On one side is the working mother of three who still shows up for events and cameras, and on the other is the woman dealing with restraining orders, contested finances and a home life turned upside down. She has spoken about “truths being exposed” and about how the past year forced her to reassess who and what she could trust, a theme that runs through her emotional posts about a “painful” year amid divorce and her more formal comments in interviews that underline just how destabilizing 2025 has been for her sense of self.
A Messy Split From Aaron Phypers
The turmoil traces back to the breakdown of Denise’s marriage to Aaron Phypers, a former actor turned businessman who had been her husband for six years. Aaron Phyphers filed for divorce on July 7, 2025, seeking spousal support and setting off a contentious legal process that quickly spilled into the public eye. Reports detailing all about Aaron Phypers have noted that he requested financial support from Denise even though the couple share no minor children together, a detail that sharpened the focus on money and lifestyle as central battlegrounds in the split and signaled that this would not be a quiet, amicable uncoupling.
As the filings mounted, Denise began to speak more openly about how blindsided she felt, with one account of the divorce emphasizing that she “Never Expected To Get Divorced Again” and describing her heartbreak in stark terms. In that same vein, she later broke her silence in an emotional Instagram video, calling the process “difficult” and, in her own blunt phrasing, saying “It’s been s—ty,” while thanking supporters who had stood by her as she navigated the fallout with Aaron Phypers. Those candid admissions, shared alongside court documents that referenced disputes over a document she signed for her daughter Eloise and allegations that effectively stripped Aaron of his parental role, underscored how deeply personal and complicated this breakup has become for her.
Evictions, Court Orders and a ‘Grim’ Future for Her Ex
While Denise has been trying to stabilize her own life, the legal and financial pressure around the former couple’s housing situation has intensified. A Superior Court judge ordered Denise and Aaron’s former landlord to be paid after an $84,000 rent dispute, with the court siding against them in a case that detailed how they had been living in a luxury home while falling behind on $12,000 in monthly rent. That decision dovetailed with a separate ruling that Denise Richards’ estranged husband would be evicted from a high-end California property, a development framed as part of a “TUMULTUOUS JOURNEY FROM” Hollywood comfort to the stark realities of divorce court and mounting debts.
The fallout has been particularly stark for Aaron, whose post-split prospects have been described as a “Shockingly Grim Future After Court,” with sources saying he faces serious financial strain after Denise pushed back against his demands. One report noted that Denise Richards’ estranged husband loses control of a former family mansion that spans nearly 7,000 square feet, a symbolically loaded loss that captures how dramatically his circumstances have shifted. More recently, coverage has detailed how Denise Richards’ ex Aaron Phypers and his parents are “begging” for help as they are evicted from an LA home valued at $3.3 million, a scene that illustrates how the divorce has rippled beyond the couple themselves and into the lives of extended family members who once shared in their lifestyle.
Health Scares and Allegations of Abuse
Complicating the legal and financial drama has been a layer of health and safety concerns that Denise has had to manage alongside the divorce. She revealed that she would undergo surgery in December, explaining that the procedure was scheduled even as she remained embroiled in a messy split from Aaron Phypers and as his own legal calendar became crowded with a conflict involving another case. The timing meant that Denise Richards was preparing for an operation while also facing motions in which her legal team argued that she should be awarded sanctions, a convergence of personal vulnerability and courtroom aggression that added to the sense of 2025 as a year of unrelenting pressure.
At the same time, reporting has highlighted that Denise Richards is speaking out about “painful” moments tied not only to the divorce itself but also to allegations of abuse involving Aaron Phypers. In coverage that summarized key points under a “NEED TO KNOW” banner, she was described as shedding “a lot” of emotional weight as she confronted accusations and revisited incidents that had left lasting scars. Those accounts, which connect her candid reflections to a broader narrative of alleged mistreatment, help explain why she has framed the past year as one of shedding and survival, and why she has been so adamant about drawing a line between the life she is leaving behind and the one she is trying to build for herself and her children.
Reclaiming Identity and Looking Ahead to 2026
Even amid the chaos, Denise has been deliberate about signaling that she is not defined solely by court filings and eviction notices. She has spoken about how she is “Finally Starting” to feel like herself again, using that phrase as a kind of mantra for a new chapter that prioritizes stability and self-respect over appearances. In one reflective message, Denise Richards Calls 2025 “One of the Most Painful Years” of her life but emphasizes that she is looking forward to 2026, a pivot that reframes the narrative from victimhood to resilience and suggests that she sees the worst of the storm as something she has already weathered rather than something still on the horizon.
Her public persona has mirrored that shift, from the way she has addressed fans as “the mom of three” who is grateful for their support to the subtle but symbolic changes in her appearance. Coverage of Denise’s new hair amid the Aaron Phyphers divorce, for instance, cast her updated look as a visual marker of reinvention at a time when her husband of six years was asking for spousal support in the divorce. In a separate reflection, Denise Richards gets emotional after one of her “Most Painful Years” of her life, talking about “Truths Being Exposed” and thanking those who stayed by her side, while another account of her “painful” year amid divorce notes that she is consciously looking forward to 2026 and the new chapter it represents. Together with her comments about living “two different lives” and the detailed reporting on restraining orders earlier in November, these moments paint a picture of a woman who has been forced to confront hard realities but is determined to emerge with a clearer sense of who she is and what she will no longer accept.
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