PHAEDRA PARKS: Why I Wasn't There

Real Housewives of Atlanta star Phaedra Parks has a message for all you critics who dragged her for not showing up at her husband Apollo Nida's sentencing -- step off.

In a statement released by Bravo, she says, "The truth is I had been there for him in so many ways for such a long time. By the time all of this went down, it was apparent the marriage was over and my focus needed to be exclusively on the well being of our children."

Phaedra adds that the ups and downs in their marriage left her "numb" and that by the time of the sentencing, she had stopped worrying about how Apollo felt. "My attention was exclusively on the children’s needs and doing everything I could to minimize the impact of this on their lives."

The Quickies:

Phaedra makes some good points, but there's also something to be said for supporting your children's father.

It's easy to judge someone watching their relationship on a reality show. But you don't know what they actually went through. 

Are you surprised that women haven't been more sympathetic to Apollo? Especially considering a lot of them have been through similar relationships?

photo via twitter