Married at First Sight star Bennett Kirschner and expert Pastor Calvin Roberson are defending Christina's emotional outburst prior to walking down the aisle.
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Pastor Cal and his fellow Married at First Sight experts, Dr. Pepper Schwartz and Dr. Viviana Coles, matched Christina, a 30-year-old flight attendant from Houma, LA, with Henry Rodriguez, a 35-year-old clinical recruiter from Arabi, LA, to marry on Season 11 of the Lifetime reality series.
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During the August 5 episode of Married at First Sight: Unfiltered, Bennett, Pastor Cal and Henry watched back a Season 11 clip in which Christina vented about being tired of waiting for her wedding to commence.
"Let's just do it," Christina cried to the producers, expressing annoyance over Diary Cam interviews and all the distractions.
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Unfiltered host Jamie Otis, who starred on Season 1 of Married at First Sight and is still married to her match, Doug Hehner, admitted it's hard to "control how you're feeling" on your wedding day when you're a bride about to meet her groom for the first time.
When asked for his thoughts on how Christina acted before walking down the aisle, Pastor Cal replied, "People respond to stress in different ways."
"I mean, that was a little divaesque and [Christina was] a little frustrated, but I hope that in spite of people's frustrations, they can still just remain respectful and kind," Pastor Cal explained.
But Bennett said he could totally understand why Christina had a bit of a meltdown or lashed out prior to meeting her future husband.
"I completely understand her feelings in that moment," Bennett shared.
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"It's an operation that has so many tentacles, from the marriage ceremony itself to the celebration to the [wedding night]. But it's also a film set, so there is so much going on at once, and as, you know, all of these parts are trying to operate, there are naturally going to be a lot of hiccups."
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Bennett was matched to marry Amelia Fatsi on Married at First Sight's eleventh season, and he apparently had to work through some frustrations as well before saying, "I do."
"I remember, for our wedding, we had to wait, like, three or four hours when ostensibly nothing was going on, and then the wedding happened," Bennett recalled.
"So I can understand how over the course of that time, when you don't see what you're waiting for and you have no idea what you're waiting for, someone might feel anxious and start to feel uneasy because there is all this absent waiting time."
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Jamie added a Married at First Sight participant's anxiety probably spikes if she or she feels ready for the experience but then is forced to wait to get on with it.
"What was it like to watch your wife moments leading up to your wedding?" Jamie asked Henry on Unfiltered.
"She seemed a little stressed, I guess. She seemed anxious," Henry admitted. "It's a big day."
Once Henry and Christina's wedding commenced, Henry could be heard whispering to himself, "She's tall," after catching his first glimpse of the bride walking towards him.
"Is she what you pictured your wife looking like?" Jamie asked Henry, who also noticeably avoided eye contact with Christina during their wedding ceremony.
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"You know, I really tried to keep, like, a really open mind," Henry revealed.
"My initial thought was, 'Please don't know her and if [I] do, please let it be in a capacity that would be okay.' But I thought she was pretty and I was glad I didn't know her in any way. It was just the moment when everything became really real."
And for Christina's part, she told the cameras on Season 11 Henry seemed "very different" from someone she'd "usually date."
Christina thought Henry acted very shy and reserved, and so she figured she would have to take the lead in their relationship. For example, Christina even went in for the kiss at the altar and for a smooch during wedding photos.
Christina and Henry's wedding reception turned out to be a success, with Christina really liking Henry's female friends -- although they talked badly about Christina behind her back -- and the next day, Christina and Henry enjoyed brunch with their respective in-laws.
The couple then learned they'd be traveling to Mexico for their honeymoon, which was captured on the latest Married at First Sight episode.
Despite awkward silences and a lack of physical touch, Christina, a well-traveled flight attendant, said she looked forward to having adventures with Henry and teaching him things since it would be his first trip out of the country.
Married at First Sight's eleventh season also stars Miles Williams and Karen Landry, Woody Randall and Amani, and Brett and Olivia.
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