Love After Lockup is the newest reality show craze on WEtv. Caitlin is featured on the show along with her boyfriend Matt. The two met while he was incarcerated, something that has garnered a lot of attention. Now that he is released and their relationship will be taken to the real world, there is a lot going on.
Caitlin talked to Monsters & Critics, sharing a little about her relationship with Matt and how she is handling the spotlight from being on the show.
While she is one of the bigger personalities on the show, some of what she had to say may surprise Love After Lockup viewers.
Monsters & Critics: Did you watch the first season of Love After Lockup?
Caitlin: No, so crazy. Kathy, Matt’s mom actually posted in like a Facebook group, some sort of support group for prison families or something.
It was something like “my son is getting out after a three and a half year sentence, he’s met a girl since he has been incarcerated. I’m really excited to see what life has in store,” or something like that.
Somebody from the show
So, then with everything that was going on in my life at the time and how rapidly everything kind of transpired, I didn’t have time to watch the first season.
So, I read a little bit about it, and obviously talked to casting and producers. Matt and I had several conversations about it, and came to the agreement that if nothing else it would be a cool story and we would have it documented on film to look back on it years from now.
M&C: It would be like your love story playing out on television? How cool!
Caitlin: Fun fact – Our messages, there were like 600 of them between us, throughout however long and when I have time I’m going to go back and print all of those off and put them in sheet protectors and put them in a book. Because really, you get to read our entire relationship building and coming to his release date. It’s a cool thing.
M&C: What has been the hardest part of letting your relationship play out on television?
Caitlin: The doubt, and I think the negativity. There’s been a couple of posts on Instagram where I’ve used the hashtag “positivity police” and the negativity is hard. Life is hard and that’s without other people chiming in with how sh***y your decisions are or whatever.
Or that outfit or that bra or that guy, whatever. Life is hard enough without all these strangers throwing their two cents in. All the doubt and the hate has not been the easiest thing.
M&C: Were you big on social media before Love After Lockup or is this a new thing for you?
Caitlin: I wasn’t huge on social media. I mean I have been on Facebook and this and that, but I had stuff going on in my own life even prior to meeting Matt, so I had taken a hiatus from really everything.
Once the show came about, obviously if I’m putting myself out on television I should kinda put myself out there a little bit more socially as well.
M&C: What has been the best part about watching your relationship play out on television?
Caitlin: Well, I get to go back to those moments. So the episode where he was released and I show up at the prison and the COs (correctional officers) are being terrible to me. I am going back to that moment and thinking, Where’s Ashton? Am I getting Punk’d right now? Are they really not going to let him out.
I was really thinking that somehow, something along the way had been screwed up and he wasn’t really getting out, and this was all f***ed up.
And then, the next episode, he gets out and I get to wrap my arms around him, and I get to jump on him and hug him.
I get to feel the joy again. It’s the rollercoaster all over again. To be able to feel those epic highs again is really cool.
M&C: Are you and Matt still together?
Caitlin: Matt and I are doing life together. We are day by daying it. We have struggles, we have fights. We have this and that but, you know we are still doing stuff together.
M&C: Would you do this all over again if you knew what you know now?
Caitlin: Yeah. Yes, because you know, I mean there has been negative but there has also been positive. I have kind of, I chose to go on Instagram and only Instagram because I feel like I can kind of filter the negativity out the best there.
So, while I am not going to sit here and be completely naive and think the negativity doesn’t exist, cause I know it does, I’m embracing the positive. There are people saying, “Hey, I know. I’ve been there. I’ve walked in your shoes. Things are hard, it gets better. Keep on keeping on.”
So, the support, yeah.
It’s a cool experience. How many people get to say that they’re on TV for longer than 2.5 seconds and they get to watch their life unfold for a second.
Monsters & Critics: If you could give women in your shoes advice, what would you say?
Caitlin: I mean dating someone incarcerated and all that, my best advice is to take it day by day. And as far as the show would be, you got to check yourself mentally.
Are you strong enough? B
Love After Lockup airs Friday nights at 9/8c on WEtv.