If you look up the word legion, the denotation is a vast number of people or things. It’s fitting that the term was chosen as a pseudonym for a man that was apparently leading a double life that his wife knew nothing about. When she found out, she invited us all in to unpack the salacious details together.
It all started on Valentine’s Day when a TikTok user called Reesa Teesa posted a 50-part series of videos entitled Who TF Did I Marry where she explained, in great detail, all of the deep deception she’d endured in a marriage to her now ex-husband she calls Legion. The series has racked up more than 1 million views per video since the first went up and has spurned countless think pieces, understandable since Reesa Teesa masterfully shared how Legion’s lies affected her mental and emotional health. Her storytelling has inspired many conversations about the woes of romantic relationship, but what hasn’t been spoken about enough is the financial vulnerability Reesa Teesa faced. Here are some key learnings we gleaned from the wild tale, and how the series can serve as a cautionary money tale.
Safeguard your finances with research
Although Reesa Teesa told viewers she works in law enforcement per some of her videos, she still managed to be duped by her ex-husband, who she’d initially met on social media. In the series, she’d said she did a cursory background check on him, it clearly wasn’t enough, especially since they went on to move in together in her home, and eventually get married despite not having many truthful details about his life.
Before committing to any joint financial agreements with someone, even a life partner, it’s recommended to learn more about their background before taking the leap. Using apps like Intelius is a smart and quick way to get more information on whether this person has a criminal background, social media content (even hidden accounts) and more.
Rethink major purchases
Reesa Teesa shared that Legion convinced her to purchase him a car that she didn’t want, and promised to pay her back. He never did. Against her better judgement, she shared she went through with the purchase because she wanted to help, despite having her misgivings about the transaction.
Although it seems like she could afford the purchase, it was one she didn’t want to make. It may seem obvious, but it still bears saying that when it comes to major financial commitments like, move slowly. Decisions like these could drastically impact your credit if not careful, impair your chances of securing loans in the future.
Listen to your head before your heart
This may be controversial, but sometimes love just isn’t enough.
At several points in Reesa Teesa’s story, glaring red flags waved, including how quickly she committed to Legion, and offered him access to her finances and even her home (they moved in together just weeks after meeting each other online). Although she shared he paid for almost everything in the beginning, that quickly changed, and she was forced to make some allowances when he fell on hard times.
It turns out, he’d lied about his high-paying profession, net worth and pretty much everything else about his life which led to many other calamities in their short marriage.
A survey in January by US News & Report about “financial infidelity” spoke to participants about how transparent they are in their marriages and found one in five people lied to their partner about their earnings and one in four lied about their debt.
This illustrates how common lying about money can be in relationships, which should be cause for pause before jumping into a major financial commitment with someone you might now know as well as you think you do. Love is beautiful, but it should be healthy, and that usually takes time. Take Reesa Teesa’s story as an example of that.