Forty-year-old Taylor Armstrong was born Shana Hughes and has gone by many names, including Shana Ford, Shana Taylor, Taylor Ford and Taylor Ford-Armstrong. Taylor was married to venture capitalist Russell Armstrong, with whom she had daughter Kennedy Caroline (born 2006). Alleging abuse, Taylor filed for divorce in July 2011. A month later, on August 15, 2011, Russel committed suicide.
Following Russell's death, Bravo edited RHOBH's Season Two (which began airing in September 2011), but it still showed the couple's unraveling marriage and Taylor's accusations of physical abuse.
Taylor's New York Times bestselling memoir, Hiding from Reality: My Story of Love, Loss and Finding the Courage Within, chronicles her troubled childhood and the plastic surgery that was necessary to reconstruct her face after one violent attack by her husband. Taylor gives talks around the country about domestic violence and supports abused women's shelters.
