Days of Our Lives: There Needs to Be More to Stephanie’s Lingering PTSD Than Another Love Triangle

Days of Our Lives often fumbles when it comes to representing mental health issues.

That’s why I’ve been impressed by how the soap opera has handled Stephanie’s lingering PTSD after her kidnapping.

However, I’m now fearful that the series may use her latest breakdown and near-tragedy to introduce another love triangle instead of focusing on her healing.

This has been some of Abigail Klein’s best work as Stephanie, and it’s allowed her to tap into Stephanie’s past, including why she’s attracted to certain types of men.

We guessed that Stephanie only wanted a gun because she was terrified to be alone, and when I saw the Days of Our Lives Summer promo, I knew she had shot someone accidentally.

Stephanie has had too many stressors thrown at her lately and hasn’t been able to cope.

Stephanie Tried to Take Her Power Back, but Failed

It’s challenging to see Stephanie so down on herself, given how strong she’s always been.

She tried to help herself by practicing gun safety, but she lied to her father and everything else by keeping her gun unlocked and loaded because she still feared an intruder could enter at any time.

It’s great that Days of Our Lives explored why Stephanie struggled with low self-esteem and abandonment issues, because she couldn’t move on until she knew the root cause.

Stephanie, like Marlena, has been kidnapped by the Dimeras or a Dimera henchman (Owen Kent) many times, beginning when she was an infant.

Fortunately, Days has not magically fixed Stephanie. Instead, we’ve seen her experience highs and lows and different stages of healing along the way.

It’s been realistic.

I Fear Joy Will Use an Accidental Shooting to Her Advantage

It’s no secret that Joy has been trying to come between Alex and Stephanie ever since she reappeared in Salem with Kelsey.

I don’t think she deserved to be shot at. However, I wonder if she left her phone at their apartment on purpose so she’d have another reason to drop by unannounced.

Stephanie had difficulty sleeping and took too many sleeping pills, putting her on high alert when she saw someone enter the apartment who wasn’t Alex.

Did she act rashly? Absolutely. Was she a dangerous criminal? No.

Shooting Joy haunted Stephanie, making her feel even guiltier and more overwhelmed, and putting more stress on her relationship with Alex.

Stephanie needed help more than she needed to be prosecuted by the law. She was lucky that so many people wanted to protect her.

I’m glad Stephanie wanted to see Marlena immediately and take self-defense classes. These were proactive ways to heal, better than the gun.

Understandably, Joy’s first instinct was to think of her daughter’s safety.

Maybe it would be best for Stephanie not to see Kelsey for a while, since she wasn’t overjoyed about having the baby in their lives.

But it seemed Joy wanted Alex to choose his priority, and he was in a no-win situation. Blackmailing him wasn’t a good look.

Stephanie’s PTSD Is a Lot for Newlyweds and Eerily Familiar

Ever since Stephanie and Alex got married back in February, the hits haven’t stopped coming.

Instead of newlywed bliss, Stephanie was kidnapped by Owen Kent again and dealt with PTSD.

That stalker storyline with lingering mental health issues felt similar to what Chad and Abby dealt with as newlyweds over a decade ago.

Ironically, their stalker was Robert Scott Wilson, who played Ben Weston at the time.

It’s still challenging to see him playing the leading man, Alex Kirakis, and trying to support Stephanie through this crisis.

While I believe that Alex loves Stephanie and would protect her, his tone and attitude seem to be changing.

He acts more like he’s afraid she’ll break if anything unpleasant happens than he does as someone who is passionately in love with her.

Will that be their downfall, as he’s stuck in the middle between his new wife and getting to know his infant daughter?

I enjoy a good love triangle. However, I’d rather see Stephanie continue to grow stronger as she and Alex work on their physical relationship, with her feeling secure.

Over to you, Days of Our Lives Fanatics. Are you pleased with how the soap opera has covered Stephanie’s PTSD? Do you think it was a way for Alex to become closer to Joy and Kelsey?

Let us know in the comments.

Let’s keep the conversation going — it’s the only way the good stuff survives.
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