‘Married at First Sight’: Katie Conrad Sends Derek Sherman To Sleep On the Couch, Doesn’t Know If She Can Be His ‘Biggest Fan’
Derek Sherman and Katie Conrad struggled in their marriage on Lifetime’s Married at First Sight Season 10 almost as soon as they returned from their honeymoon in Panama. Katie worried that Derek wasn’t ready for marriage because he hadn’t been in love before. Meanwhile, Derek was concerned about Katie’s lingering romantic feelings for a former fling.
At the couple’s one-month anniversary dinner, their issues escalated after Derek shared some of his dreams for the future. Some were fairly straightforward, like backpacking in different countries, while others—like composing his own Christmas song, building two treehouses, and writing a children’s book—were a little more whimsical or adventurous.
Katie was worried about Derek’s goals, as she thought they might interfere with their future together. On the Mar. 18 episode of Married at First Sight, “Move In Or Move On,” Katie and Derek fought bitterly about his dreams just before Recommitment Day. In a counseling session with Dr. Viviana Coles, Katie even admitted she didn’t know if she could ever be her husband’s “biggest fan” or truly support him.
Derek confessed that he and Katie had a major argument
On Recommitment Day—when the Married at First Sight couples are asked to discuss and assess their ongoing commitment, or lack thereof, to their marriages after five weeks—Katie met with Dr. Viviana, while Derek met with Pastor Cal Roberson. Both of them discussed what was and wasn’t working in their relationship with their respective counselors.
Of his relationship with Katie, Derek told Pastor Cal, “We’ve been doing pretty good. We’ve been making more strides.”
However, he admitted, things had taken a dark turn in recent weeks. “But things changed so much as of late. We’ve gotten in a couple of arguments,” the Married at First Sight star told the pastor. “Even last night, we got into a big fight, and I had to sleep on the couch.”
Katie told Dr. Viviana that she had thought things were going well after their one-month anniversary. But she wasn’t sure she could fully support Derek in his hopes for the future, which made her concerned about their potential progress going forward.
“After our anniversary night, I was feeling a lot more hopeful…I saw that effort from him,” Katie began. “And I think we do have a solid friendship. But we he has all these hopes and dreams and goals, and it’s not something that I fully believe in or stand behind.”
The ‘Married at First Sight’ star worried that Katie wouldn’t support his dreams
Derek told Pastor Cal that he knew all of his dreams weren’t completely realistic, and some of them were just “silly, embarrassing things” he wanted to do for fun. Still, Katie’s lack of support concerned him.
“Just because you have a family and you have kids doesn’t mean you can’t achieve some of your dreams,” Derek told the Married at First Sight expert. “That’s my biggest concern right now.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Viviana wondered why Katie wasn’t attracted to Derek’s long list of future goals. “Most people are super attracted to ambition,” she said.
The 26-year-old said she thought Derek’s hopes seemed immature and didn’t endear him to her. “I think it’s the kind of direction he wants to go with it,” Katie explained. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it, but I just don’t really know if I could be his #1 cheerleader, because I would be pretending.”
Katie said she didn’t feel ‘secure’ in her relationship with Derek because of his goals
Still, both Katie and Derek saw some hope for their relationship going forward, if they were able to work through their issues.
“What would it take for you to say yes on Decision Day?” Dr. Viviana asked Katie.
The Married at First Sight star thought for a moment before answering, “If he continues to become more open having the difficult conversations…I would want to say yes.”
She added that she wanted to be with a family man who was ready for a stable, serious relationship. She didn’t always know if that description fit Derek, at least not yet. “I really need him to be more realistic, because he really can be pretty immature sometimes,” Katie complained. “I don’t feel secure.”
Katie began to cry as she admitted she didn’t know how passionate she could ever truly be about Derek. “I do care about him,” she said tearfully. “I don’t know if I see myself really getting to that point of being his number one fan. But I really, really want to be.”
Derek, too, said he wanted to continue to work on his marriage to Katie. But if she didn’t support him emotionally, he lamented, that might change. “I need my wife to support me in some of my dreams,” he asserted. “The lack of belief hits me. That’s something I do need to assess.”
