Mike Goodnough had a "complicated relationship" with Valerie Bertinelli.
The 54-year-old writer split from Food Network star Valerie, 64, in November 2024 after 10 months of dating, and he has now admitted that their breakup was the "by far the most painful experience" he has ever been through.
He wrote on Instagram: "Valerie and I had a complicated relationship. Our time as a couple ended months ago, but our close contact only really ended recently. So, it is more ‘fresh’ than it would seem.
"In trying to be a couple, an endless number of things got in the way. Almost all of them were “external.” They were things outside of our relationship per se which nonetheless interfered.
"The one thing that was never an issue was our love for each other. I loved Valerie more than I’ve ever loved someone in a relationship of choice. (My love for my son is a whole different thing)
"As a result, the dissolution of our relationship and way it played out has been by far the most painful experience of my life. It has been so acutely agonizing, it has entirely changed the scale of how much heartbreak can hurt. What was once a 10 is now a four.
Mike added that he wanted himself and Valerie to have a "gentle parting" from one another but he couldn't make that happen and he has "cried enough" tears about the situation at this point.
He said: "Over the last few months, I had hoped we’d find a way to a gentle parting rather than a closed door but couldn’t seem to get us to one. I reached out again this week in that hope. No answer is an answer though. I accept it.
"With that said, this chapter is now closed for me.
"I won’t have anything more to say about it - and nothing I have to say w"ill be about it.
"I’ve cried about this enough. It’s time to move on."
Valerie - who was initially married to late rock star Eddie Van Halen from 1981 until 2007 - split from Tom Vitale, 61, in 2022 after more than a decade of marriage and after her split from Mike, admitted that she feels "shame" when she messes things up.
She wrote on Instagram: "I think about mistakes I’ve made in relationships a lot.
"I’ve been on both sides of this and I think I finally have some perspective, so I thought I’d share.
"When you feel hurt and wronged and know you deserve an apology but are being stonewalled by your partner because they’re feeling shame, maybe this can shift your thinking.
Are you only pointing out what they’re doing wrong, being hypercritical, and expecting them to just fix it? That could be making things worse.
"Change, real change, never happens through criticism, shame, or pressure. They most likely already feel all that. (I know when I f*** up, oof, do I feel shame."
