I’m not sure how many viewers of Married to Medicine Houston watch other Bravo shows, but it is customary, once a show wraps, for the stars to gather with Bravo host extraordinaire Andy Cohen to rehash all of the past season’s drama. For some reason, this show, which has consistently been treated like an afterthought by the Bravo powers that be, isn’t getting a reunion. The fact that it wrapped filming nearly two years ago and there will be no show to catch viewers up on the current goings-on in the Houston medical community led us (and many other viewers) to wonder: Where are they now?
So we reached out to Ashandra, Elly, Erika, Monica and Rachel, along with special guest star Cindi Rose, to find out what they’ve been up to since filming ended. Did Erika and Derek decide to have a baby? Are Monica and Imad still together? Has Maribel finally moved out of Rachel’s house? We’ve got all your answers right here.
Ashandra
Dr. A has already been super busy in the new year — so busy that we weren’t able to get much info from her. We can tell you that she’s opened a new practice, though, called Elite Dental Wellness, and she’s ready to give your smile “a touch of class.”
Ashandra and my darling Ricky remain very involved in their church, The Fountain of Praise, which partnered with the Wainerdi Wellness Institute to open the Hillcroft Health and Wellness Center in March of 2015, and yes, there are dental facilities there (thanks in part to Ashandra’s hard work).
Avery and Logan are doing great, but, in spite of Ricky’s pleading, there have been no new additions to the Batiste/Cumby clan. I’m not sure how Ashandra has managed to put a kibosh on Ricky’s plans, though, cause that fine man is looking better than ever. Hey, Ricky!
Elly
Since filming ended, Elly (who is, in fact, a doctor) has been busy growing her practice, Memorial Hearing. She’s also been busy with her side business, Sofreh Chic, constructing sofrehs for Persian weddings, sometimes with the help of her sister, Pegah.
That’s right, even though there was talk of her moving, Pegah still spends most of her time in Houston, so the sisters still get to see each other frequently. In fact, the two of them spend a lot of time with Rachel and Ashandra, as well — a group Elly lovingly refers to as “my batches.”
Elly’s adorable parents are “as adorable as ever” and still cook complete Persian feasts for the family almost daily. I’m now submitting my application to be a part of the “batches” and help eat all the Persian food.
Elly says she doesn’t really stay in touch with Erika and Monica, as they were “just not on the same page.” She does call the process of working on the show an “exciting experience,” though, and she’s happy that the show was able to bring so much attention to the field of audiology and the great work she does to help others. #doctorgateOVER
Erika
For Erika, “the show feels like a million years ago!” Much of the season focused on Erika and Derek’s exploration into fertility and options for having a family, and earlier this year the couple went through IVF and froze two embryos. Erika says she basically found out on camera that she wasn’t fertile and pretty much couldn’t get pregnant the natural way. The IVF produced two viable embryos — a boy and a girl — so now Erika and Derek are trying to decide when to implant (they’re leaning toward this spring) and if they should use a surrogate. The whole process was very stressful for the two of them, but Erika thinks it’s important for women to see other women struggling with fertility, since the issues are far more common than many people realize. Derika did welcome a new family member shortly after wrapping the show, though: an English Bulldog named Bucky!
As for the practice, Erika says that is going amazingly well. The name was changed to Houston Plastic Craniofacial & Sinus Surgery, and they opened a big, new building near Memorial City. With plans to open a new office in The Woodlands soon, Erika is busier than ever and shifting her focus away from reconstructive and trauma surgery and toward cosmetic surgery. Either way, she still has blood on her nearly 99 percent of the time.
Recently, Erika has been dealing with her mother’s dementia, which could be due to Alzheimer’s or could be a repercussion from years of wrestling injuries known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy. (Her mother is former pro-wrestler Betty Niccoli.) She says it’s heartbreaking to watch someone you love deteriorate, but she’s grateful for all the time they get to spend together.
Speaking of spending time together…yeah, that ain’t really happening with Erika and the rest of the ladies. She and Monica have become close since working on the show together (they did know each other before filming, though), but she admits she didn’t develop friendships with anyone else.
“It was such a whirlwind of a few months, and it’s so easy to see how the stresses of the show bring some people together and pit others against each other,” Erika says. “I don’t know exactly what I expected, but it was such a bizarre experience!”
Monica
Like Ashandra, Monica responded to our request for an update by noting how busy she is. Clearly, as viewers, we find it easy to forget that these women are, you know, working doctors, and they aren’t waiting around Twitter for me to contact them. Sigh.
Anyway, the big news with Monica is that she and Imad finally did it! Yes, ladies and gents, they finally...broke up! The two don’t seem to have any bad blood, though, so that’s nice.
Monica has also expanded her dancing talents beyond Bollywood to ballroom dancing. In May, she performed at the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Association gala as part of their “Dancing with the Stars” event.
No word on how her super-sweet parents are doing, but let me be the first to suggest a spin-off in which her mother counsels would-be couples on their love lives over margaritas. Perfection, am I right?
Rachel
Rachel and James have probably seen the biggest changes since the show ended. Not only did Mama Maribel move out (don’t worry, she’s still close enough to come over for a mimosa at a moment’s notice), but a new, even cuter (sorry, Maribel) tenant moved in. In August, the couple welcomed their first child, William! He’s positively adorable, and Rachel says that while James still loves his work, he loves coming home to his little guy even more.
Rachel has stayed on the dean’s list in nursing school — there are photos on Twitter to prove it!—and plans on graduating this February. She’s currently considering job options and “looking forward to no longer being a student.” Let’s just hope she can still make time for wine once she’s done hosting study groups.
And as for Maribel…oh, Maribel, you saucy minx! Maribel is still single, so I think once Monica’s mom starts her dating advice show, Maribel should bring in potential suitors for evaluation. Are you listening, Bravo? Married to Medicine Houston may not be back for a second season, but I’m pretty sure this new idea is gold.
Cindi
Ever the go-getter, Cindi hasn't slowed down at all since the show ended. She co-produced an award-winning documentary about silhouette art called Silhouette Secrets and has been traveling on a 19-city tour creating silhouettes for Hermés. She also continues to be a fixture on Houston's social/fundraising scene and points out that she raised more than $100,000 for charity events during the filming of MTMH.
She has recently become a grandmother — twice! She has two four-month-old grandbabies, one from her daughter, Erica, a reality star in her own right who made a few appearances on the show, and one from her son, Ben.
When she isn't doting on those two cuties, Cindi does keep in touch with Monica and Erika, and she's even reached out to Elly, Rachel and Ashandra. Cindi maintains she "never spoke poorly of anyone" on the show, and she forgives those who did "for all for the unkind words they said during filming to my face and behind my back. I know they did it for ratings."
She still enjoys tending her home garden, but no word on whether she continues to pull weeds in a designer beret.
Ladies, thanks for all the laughs, all the secondhand embarrassment and all the wine your antics forced me to drink. Mostly, thanks for representing Houston in such a great way! Sure, there were some unfortunate moments here and there, but, for the most part, the cast of Married to Medicine Houston showed the masses what we’ve known all along: Houston is diverse, cultured and, yes, a little crazy.
From left, Rachel Suliburk, Ashandra Batiste, Pegah Pourasef, and Elly Pourasef.
