When you get burned by love, revenge often feels like the best, well, revenge.
But, while gathering the contents of your ex’s closet into the middle of the kitchen floor and dumping the entire contents of the fridge on them may feel cathartic (yes, a friend of mine actually did this), it’s a bit — okay, a lot —- childish.
The eight women in Re-Vamped, a new series premiering this Sunday on the SLICE Network, are after a more healthy, satisfying and long-lasting type of revenge — self-empowerment. Oh, and the joy of making your ex crazy when he sees you’ve learned to become a smokin’ burlesque dancer, of course.
Each woman in Re-Vamped has her own relationship horror story: one was dumped on her birthday for her best friend (and cousin); another was rejected by her long-term boyfriend via email while battling cancer. Yet another’s 21-year relationship came to a halt when she discovered that her partner was being unfaithful. Ouch.
Given this, these women are above indulging in a little petty ex-bashing, but the main focus of the six weeks in “Camp ReVamp” is to help these women rebuild their lives, their self-esteem and to get back their dating mojo.
I had the pleasure of helping these women with that last bit as a guest expert on episode six in which I coach the women through a speed-dating event and help them polish up their rusty dating skills. Nothing like eight mini-dates during the course of an hour under the watchful eye of me, the camera and entire film crew to whip you back into dating shape.
The series ends with the women putting on a burlesque show for friends and family and, yes, even some exes. Hey, what good is all that work if you can’t rub it in his face a little?
But, most importantly, Camp ReVamp shows that, while this kind of momentary revenge can be sweet, getting your life together and moving on is much, much sweeter. Re-Vamped premieres Sept. 6 at 10 p.m. ET on Slice. Yours truly appears in the Oct. 11 episode.
Re-Vamped premieres Sunday on Slice
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– Josey Vogels is a sex and relationship columnist and author of five books on the subjects. For more info, visit www.joseyvogels.com.
