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‘Sister Wives’: How Christine stayed calm during Kody’s ‘knife in the kidneys’ outburst

The reality star weighs in on the moment that “Sister Wives” fans have been talking about all season.

Season 17 of "Sister Wives" has been filled with countless memorable moments — including Kody Brown's explosive "knife in the kidneys" outburst from Episode 10.

If you'll recall, Kody — during his last family meeting with ex-wife Christine Brown present — uses a colorful analogy to describe the pain of her leaving him.

In the scene, Kody meets with his four wives to discuss Christine’s move to Utah amid their ongoing divorce. Over the course of the meeting, he grows progressively angrier. The crescendo comes when Kody rises to his feet, gestures with his hands, and says the following: “Man, just the knife in the kidneys over all these years! The sacrifices that I’ve made to love you. Wasted!”

Speaking to TODAY.com over Zoom, Christine explains exactly what was going through her mind as the tense encounter played out.

“I almost leapt up, then I put both of my feet on the ground, and I took a deep breath," she says.

She maintained her composure, she says, by "tapping into (her) center."

"I was like, 'OK, at my core, I just want what’s right for everybody. I just want to live my own life. And I honestly feel like me living my own life and me leaving is not only good for me, but it’s good for everybody,'" she says. "And I just tapped into that."

While it didn't necessarily show on her face, Christine says there was a lot rushing through her head in that moment.

"I was like, 'Everyone has a right to be upset and to be angry; it’s fine. Everyone has that right,'" she says. "I went through it. I was angry and I was frustrated and I was mad and I was hurt. But I’m the only one responsible for my life, so I decided to live my life."

In that tense moment, Christine says she was also also thinking about the impact that her reaction would have on her kids once they watched it on TV.

"I want them to always see that you can do anything that’s hard with grace."

Christine Brown

"I always tell my kids, 'Always be a lady, always be a gentleman.' It’s the same definition for both. You just want everybody in the room to be comfortable. That’s all it comes down to," she said. "I just decided to leave like a lady 'cause my kids would know. My kids would see everything that I did."

The mother of six is proud of the way she handled herself and hopes her children are too.

"I don’t care what anybody else thinks of me. I just care what my kids think of me, and my parents. I want them to always see that you can do anything that’s hard with grace," she said.

Christine says she's determined to put her children first when it comes to her co-parenting relationship with Kody as well, especially with their youngest daughter Truely, 12.

Earlier this season, the former couple clashed over custody arrangements, so we were curious to know: How is co-parenting going these days?

Last year, Christine and Truely spent a fair amount of time visiting Flagstaff, Ariz., where Kody lives. With Truely in public school this year, trips to Arizona are less frequent, but Kody has an open invitation to visit whenever he wants.

"I told Kody, 'If you want to see her, you can come and see her. And if I come down that way, I’ll tell you,'" she says. "If she really wants to see him and is like, 'I just want to see dad this weekend,' I'll drive her there."

Christine has also been keeping Kody posted on Truely's life in Utah, including her orchestra performance schedule (she plays the violin) and her academic performance (she recently made the honor roll).

The proud mom got Truely her very own phone so she could keep in touch with her dad.

"I just want her to know I always support her relationship with Kody completely," she says. "Kids need their dads."

Christine says Truely is thriving in Utah, and recently commented on how happy she is. The sweet moment occurred during their nightly bedtime reading session.

“Out of the blue she goes, ‘I love our life here,’” Christine recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh that’s great, sweetie, what do you like about it?’ She just loves our routines. She loves our life and she loves everything that we do.”