Denise Richards Breaks Her Silence on Ongoing Divorce from Ex Aaron Phypers

Denise Richards is speaking out for the first time amid her contentious divorce from estranged husband Aaron Phypers.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, 54, shared a candid update on Instagram on Thursday, Aug. 21, more than two months after Phypers filed for divorce.

“I was just checking in to see how your summer’s been going,” she began. “Mine’s been wonderful. It’s actually been s—–, but I’m going to pretend like it’s all good. I’ve actually been posting on Instagram like nothing is going on in my life, and I can’t do that anymore because there’s something obviously going on.”

The actress went on to thank her fans for being “so kind and so supportive” amid her split from Phypers.

“I see all of your messages, I can’t comment because it’ll be taken out and put in the press, but I just wanted to, in all seriousness, say that this has been a very, very, very difficult time,” she admitted. “It’s so hard to go through a divorce.” 

“Many of you have gone through that. This isn’t my first one – this is my second one,” she added, referring to her 2006 split from Charlie Sheen. “I never thought I’d get divorced again. This is why I always say never say never.” 

“I really just wanted to say thank you so much for all of your supportive, kind, thoughtful, encouraging messages because this has been a very difficult time,” she added.

Richards noted that “circumstances around my divorce that are difficult to talk about — which one day I will talk about it when the timing is right.” 

For the time being, the Denise Richards & Her Wild Things star wants to “process everything and get through this,” adding, “It has not been easy, so your messages mean a lot.”

The television personality also addressed her decision to have “reconstructive surgery.”

“During this time, some of you may know because it was put out there that I was having reconstructive surgery. I was open and honest about having reconstructive surgery for a TV show that I did,” she admitted. “And then I had another surgery and I do want to post about that but I didn’t want to post about it during this and look inappropriate and have it seem insensitive to what I’m dealing with, but I also want to live my life and share my life, so that’s what I’m going to do and continue doing.” 

“I just wanted to say thank you so much. It makes me want to cry seeing your messages because this is a very difficult time and you guys are all helping me through it. Thank you. Lots of love,” she concluded before panning to her dog Lily and adding, “Lily says thank you too.”

Since Phypers filed for divorce last month, the pair have made a myriad of allegations against each other.

Days after the filing, Richards accused Phypers of multiple instances of physical abuse, and she was later granted a temporary restraining order against him. Phypers, who wed Richards in 2018, denied the allegations of physical abuse, calling them “completely false and deeply hurtful” in a previous statement to PEOPLE.

The same month, Richards accused her ex of violating her temporary restraining order against him and requested that Phypers return her laptop and prohibit him from disseminating information contained within it, which he denied in a statement to PEOPLE.

Phypers also accused Richards of cheating on him with another man at the beginning of the year. He claimed Richards hit him, scratched him and smashed his phone.

Phypers alleged the reality star was addicted to Vicodin in a letter to friends and family that was obtained by Page Six, and claimed that Richards needs an “intervention.”

“Some of you know this has been an issue for over 20 years. She’s no longer eating real meals, and I’ve witnessed her pass out from substances — putting herself and others in danger, including while driving with our daughter,” he said, referring to 14-year-old Eloise.

In a statement to PEOPLE, Richards’ divorce attorney Brett Berman denied the allegations and accused Phypers of abusing and harassing the actress.

“In addition to the repeated abuse perpetrated by Mr. Phypers against Ms. Richards throughout the parties’ marriage, Mr. Phypers has continued to harass Ms. Richards since being served with the Temporary Restraining Order by, among other things, disseminating private information from Ms. Richards’ cell phone and laptop, which he stole,” the statement read in part. “These actions continue to disturb Ms. Richards’ peace.”

In a response to the new allegations obtained by PEOPLE, Phypers refuted the claims made by Richards’ lawyers.

“Unfortunately, it seems Denise is experiencing another one of her now-infamous ‘upside-down jacket’ moments — and her well-paid handlers appear determined to spin it upright, no matter the cost or collateral damage,” he said in part, referencing an appearance Richards made in The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills season 13 in which she wore her jacket upside-down. “We genuinely hope she receives the help and support she clearly needs. As Denise herself once famously slurred in a less-than-sober moment — words that now echo with irony — ‘Stop it. I know what you are doing.'”

Most recently, Richards and Phypers made claims against each other about their property and daughter Eloise.

According to documents obtained by PEOPLE, Richards requested that the court order Phypers and his family to vacate her Calabasas property, which he currently resides in with his parents and brother, so she can retrieve her dogs and belongings without violating the temporary restraining order they have in place. 

“I left many of my personal items and my late mother’s items at the house based on Aaron telling me that his family would be moving back to Canada and we would be moving back into the [property],” she claimed in the complaint. “If I am not able to [retrieve] my dogs and belongings, I believe my dogs will be harmed and my property destroyed or discarded during the eviction process.”

The reality star further alleged that “Aaron and his parents and brother have severely damaged” the home, leaving it “in a state of disarray.”

In response to Richards’ allegations, a source close to Phypers said the filing is an attempt to “to divert attention away from her adulterous affair.”

“We thought all these shenanigans were being dropped from courts,” the source continued. “We also don’t see an emergency as warranted with the current action, especially with Denise’s immediate interest in trying to get into the residence Aaron lives in is not only suspicious, but manipulative.”

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In a separate court filing obtained by PEOPLE, Phypers claimed Richards had him sign adoption papers for Eloise, his “daughter by bond of over nine years,” but “failed to file them,” which has left him “legally without his daughter despite raising her as his own” since filing for divorce.

“This has caused immeasurable harm and demonstrates the imbalance [Denise] maintains in this matter,” he said in the filing.