NEED TO KNOW
Baylen Dupree’s hit reality series, Baylen Out Loud, returns to TLC on Oct. 7 at 9 p.m. ET
In season 2, viewers will see the TikToker continue to manage her Tourette Syndrome, OCD and more as her relationship with fiancé Colin Dooley continues to grow
In the first episode of the show’s latest installment, Dupree’s parents shock the young couple by advising them to try premarital counseling on Dooley’s birthday
Baylen Dupree has dedicated her adult life to destigmatization, both in addressing her own Tourette Syndrome and advocating more generally for mental health awareness. In the newest season of her TLC series, Baylen Out Loud, the TikTok star is breaking down preconceived notions — including her own — about one of her latest journeys: premarital counseling.
In February, Dupree, 23, got engaged to her boyfriend of nearly three years, Colin Dooley, 25. As fans see in her reality series, the influencer’s mother and father, Julie and Allen, showed some hesitation in fully backing the younger couple’s decision to get married. In the first episode of season 2, Dupree’s parents surprised her and Dooley with some honest advice as they celebrated his birthday.
“We have been talking about our marriage … and the parts of it that have made us successful, and it started with some premarital counseling,” Julie began in the scene at Dupree and Dooley’s apartment.
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Baylen Dupree for season 2 of TLC’s ‘Baylen Out Loud.’
The mom of six clarified that couples therapy isn’t meant to dig up issues that could break them up, but instead it should help them realize what marriage has in store. While the fiancés initially bristled at the suggestion, Dupree tells PEOPLE that the counseling sessions have proved to be far more useful than they initially guessed.
“I would say at first, me and Colin were definitely shocked that my parents brought it up to us on his birthday,” she admits. “Other than that, I feel like it’s great for people to see that you don’t have to go to premarital counseling to work on your relationship to make it better because you’re struggling. You can go there and work on it to make it better.”
Dupree — who has over 2.3 million followers on Instagram and 10.8 million on TikTok — notes that she came to realize how much of the “unknown” is added to a relationship with the addition of marriage, kids and similarly new facets.
“You never know what you’re going to get into. You never know what type of person you’re actually marrying until you have kids,” she explains. Her experience in premarital counseling is “just kind of having those tough, difficult conversations,” Dupree adds. “And I love it. I love premarital counseling.”
As glimpsed in Baylen Out Loud, she and Dooley weren’t fully on board with the suggestion, and Dupree explains to PEOPLE that she felt so sure counseling wasn’t right for their situation. They didn’t see the need to change what felt like such a “great place” in their relationship.
However, as Julie told her daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law, premarital counseling could be less about fixing and far more about improving. Since Dupree admits she’s particularly “good at avoiding” conflict, the shared therapy sessions became a way for her and Dooley to have “a lot of conversations that people don’t want to have.”
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Baylen Dupree for season 2 of TLC’s ‘Baylen Out Loud.’
“We can do things that are better. We can learn more about each other, learn more about the struggles,” says the reality star. “You don’t need to be scared to go to therapy … It’s just kind of a way to get help that I think a lot of people should use.”
Between her experiences in exposure therapy and premarital counseling, Dupree says she’s learned more about herself than she ever expected. “You learn a lot about how to cope. You learn a lot how to grow,” says the bride-to-be.
Plus, therapy doesn’t have to be all about overcoming obstacles. Dupree and Dooley had an especially validating experience after their counselor gave them a relationship “test.” Dupree claims they passed it with flying colors.
“It was the best test score I’ve ever gotten in my entire life. [The counselor] looked at us and she goes, ‘This is such a high score.’ I said, ‘I know my man,'” Dupree recalls. “Because we’ve had conversations. We align pretty much on a lot of things, but it was just really rewarding to hear that the person that you believe is your soulmate is really your soulmate. It’s pretty cool.”
Season 2 of ‘Baylen Out Loud’ premieres on Tuesday, Oct. 7, at 9 p.m. ET on TLC
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