Courteney Cox Recalls Johnny McDaid Breaking Up with Her in Therapy

Courteney Cox is reflecting on what she learned after her longtime partner Johnny McDaid broke up with her in the first minute of a couples therapy session.

When asked about the personal disaster in her life on the Minnie Questions with Minnie Driver podcast, the Friends alum, 59, admitted the Snow Patrol  rocker, 47, blindsided her by ending their engagement in a therapy session “about five years ago.”

Cox, who later reunited with McDaid, explained, “So three years in, we broke up and it was really intense. We broke up in therapy. I didn’t know it was coming, whether I should have or not.”

The actress shared that the pair went to therapy to discuss “boundaries” but instead, “he just broke up within the first minute. And I was like, what? We were engaged and I was so shocked. I was in so much pain.”

Cox — who called McDaid “an incredible human being” — noted that he had hit his breaking point in the relationship.

“He wasn’t trying to surprise me. He was in that much pain in the relationship,” she shared. “There was that much that needed to be dealt with that he had to protect himself around his heart.”

The Cougar Town star revealed the split led her to do “the most work on myself by far,” adding, “I learned how to reclaim my voice, boundaries. What were my motives in life? Like, what was my part in this?” 

Cox said she was “so thankful for that breakup” because “when we got back together, it was a different relationship, but also because it really taught me how I operated in the world.”

She continued: “What were the things from my childhood that I needed? Like whether it was to be adored by men or things that I didn’t know how to let go to be in a relationship. To not take things personally, my boundaries. I just went into myself and I had a great therapist.”

Cox and McDaid started dating in late 2013. They got engaged nine months later but called it off in late 2015. They reconciled the following year but have not gotten re-engaged.

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The Homecourt founder said she understood McDaid’s decision to break up with her, explaining, “It takes a lot of bravery to end something that has so much passion or end anything. Any kind of relationship. It’s so much easier just to stay and ride things out and make excuses and, you know, fear of pain is just too much to handle. But once you are bold enough to make decisions and go through the pain, you can’t go around it.”

Cpx added that she encourages others — including her daughter Coco, whom she shares with ex-husband David Arquette — to deal with problems directly, no matter how difficult. 

“I’m thankful that Johnny was so bold and brave because it was life-changing for me and I’m sure for him,” she concluded.