Let’s be real for a second. Most of us watch Married at First Sight for the inevitable train wrecks. We tune in to see the awkward dinner party arguments, the mismatched personalities, and the "experts" trying to explain why they paired a quiet introvert with someone who has "party animal" tattooed on their soul. But every now and then, the experiment actually works. It's weird. It's rare. But there are Married at First Sight couples still together who prove that, against all logical odds, you can find a life partner while a camera crew watches you brush your teeth.
Reality TV has a pretty abysmal track record. If you look at The Bachelor, the success rate is basically a rounding error. MAFS isn't exactly a gold mine for lifelong romance either, but the couples who survive the initial eight-week gauntlet often end up being surprisingly sturdy. They aren't just "Instagram together." They’re buying houses, raising kids, and dealing with the mundane reality of whose turn it is to take out the trash.
The OG Success Stories You Probably Forgot
Jamie Otis and Doug Hehner are the blueprint. Period. If you go back to Season 1, Jamie was literally sobbing on the floor because she wasn't attracted to Doug. It was painful to watch. Seriously. She was repulsed. But they’re still married over a decade later. They have kids. They’ve gone through incredibly public struggles, including pregnancy loss and marital dry spells. They didn't have a "fairytale" start, which honestly might be why they lasted. They started at rock bottom and built upward.
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Then there’s Ashley Petta and Anthony D'Amico from Season 5. They were almost too normal for TV. While other couples were screaming about hidden exes, they were just... figuring it out. They now have two daughters and seem to have transitioned into a life that looks nothing like a reality show. That’s the secret, right? The couples who stay together are the ones who stop acting like they’re on a show the minute the red light goes off.
Why Some MAFS Couples Actually Last
It isn’t just luck. Honestly, it’s usually about ego. Or the lack of it.
When you look at the Married at First Sight couples still together, a pattern emerges: the survivors are usually the ones who are willing to look like idiots on national television for the sake of a compromise. Look at Jephte Pierre and Shawniece Jackson from Season 6. Their wedding night was a disaster. He didn't even want to sleep in the same bed. It looked like a total mismatch. But they did the work. They went to therapy—real therapy, not just the "on-camera" sessions. Today, they’re one of the most recognizable success stories in the franchise.
The Chicago and New Orleans Luck
Statistically, some cities just had better "expert" matchmaking than others.
- Season 5 (Chicago): Gave us Ashley and Anthony.
- Season 11 (New Orleans): This was a huge year. Woody and Amani are arguably the most beloved couple in the history of the show. Their chemistry was instant, which is rare. Usually, the "love at first sight" couples burn out by the reunion, but they’ve stayed solid.
- Season 11 (Again): Karen and Miles. They were the "slow burn." People thought Miles was too into it and Karen was too guarded. Turns out, guarding your heart is a pretty smart move when you're marrying a stranger.
The Brutal Reality of the Statistics
Don't let the success stories fool you into thinking the experts are geniuses. The divorce rate for this show is hovering somewhere around 80% to 85% depending on how you count the "Decision Day" breakups versus the "Reunion" breakups. It's a high-risk gamble.
We see couples like Danielle Bergman and Bobby Dodd (Season 7) who never had a single fight on camera. Everyone thought they were faking it for the cameras. Turns out, they were just actually compatible. They have three kids now. On the flip side, you have couples like Greg Okotie and Deonna McNeill (Season 9). Deonna hadn't been in a relationship for ten years before the show. Ten years! That should have been a red flag, but they are still going strong and have a son named Declan.
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What Most People Get Wrong About the Experiment
The biggest misconception is that "chemistry" is the deciding factor. It's not. If you look at the Married at First Sight couples still together, chemistry was often the last thing to show up.
Take Briana Myles and Vincent Morales from Season 12. They had a decent start, but they had to navigate some serious cultural and personality clashes regarding how they communicated. They stayed married because they were both "all in" on the concept of marriage, not just the concept of being on TV.
Sometimes the show feels like a social experiment on how much stress a human can take before they snap. The couples who make it are the ones who see the "experts" as a resource but don't rely on them to do the heavy lifting. The experts—Dr. Pepper, Pastor Cal, and whoever else is in the rotation this season—can provide the introduction, but they aren't there at 2:00 AM when the baby is crying or the mortgage is due.
The Ones Who Surprised Us
Let's talk about Stephanie Sersen and AJ Vollmoeller from Season 8. AJ had a... let’s call it a "volatile" personality on screen. He got frustrated with the production process constantly. Most viewers pegged them for a divorce within months. Yet, here we are years later, and they are traveling the world together. They found a weird, specific rhythm that works for them.
And then there's Katina and Olajuwon from Season 14. That was a rollercoaster. People on Twitter were begging Katina to leave. They’ve had some public ups and downs—announcing a split, then getting back together, then splitting again—but as of the latest updates, they’ve been working on their marriage. It’s messy. It’s not a polished PR story. But that’s actually what makes it feel human.
A Quick Look at the Winners' Circle
If you’re trying to keep track of who to follow on Instagram for wholesome content, here is the current "Still Together" roster (as of the most recent reliable updates):
Jamie and Doug (Season 1): The legends.
Ashley and Anthony (Season 5): The gold standard of normalcy.
Jephte and Shawniece (Season 6): The ones who fought for it.
Danielle and Bobby (Season 7): The "no-fight" wonders.
Stephanie and AJ (Season 8): The adventurers.
Greg and Deonna (Season 9): The steady ones.
Austin and Jessica (Season 10): The only survivors from a messy DC season.
Woody and Amani (Season 11): Pure vibes and genuine love.
Miles and Karen (Season 11): The slow-burn success.
Briana and Vincent (Season 12): Built on solid ground.
Nicole and Christopher (Season 16): A bright spot in a recent rough patch for the show.
Why We Keep Watching
We watch because we want to believe in the shortcut. We want to believe that someone can skip the "situationships" and the ghosting and the endless swiping on Tinder. We want to believe that a group of professionals can look at a spreadsheet and find our soulmate.
The Married at First Sight couples still together are the outliers. They are the 15% who defied the odds. They remind us that marriage is less about the "spark" and more about the decision to stay in the room when things get annoying.
How to Apply "MAFS" Logic to Your Own Life
You don't need to marry a stranger to learn from these people. There are actual, actionable takeaways from the couples who survived the show.
First, stop looking for "the spark" on day one. Jamie Otis didn't have it. Deonna didn't have it. Karen didn't have it. If they had followed their initial "gut" feeling, they’d all be divorced. Sometimes the gut is just anxiety. Give things time to breathe.
Second, conflict isn't the end. It's the beginning of the next phase. The couples who flamed out usually did so because they couldn't handle the first real argument. The ones who stayed together viewed arguments as data points.
Finally, check the "Marriage Values" before the "Attraction Values." Every successful MAFS couple shared a vision for their future—kids, finances, where to live—before they even liked each other's personality.
If you're looking for more updates on these couples, the best move is to check their individual social media rather than the official show accounts. The show usually stops posting about them once the next season starts, but the couples themselves are usually pretty open about their lives. Go look at Woody and Amani’s YouTube channel if you want to see what a healthy, post-show relationship actually looks like. It’s better than the show itself.
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Next Steps for MAFS Fans
If you're following the journey of these couples, your best bet is to dive into the "Where Are They Now" specials often aired on Lifetime. However, keep in mind these are highly edited. For the raw truth, listen to podcasts like Bald and the Beautiful (which often features alumni) or Jamie Otis’s Hot Marriage Cool Parents. They provide the nuance that a 42-minute TV episode usually cuts out for the sake of drama. Always verify the current status of couples via their most recent legal filings or verified social posts, as the "reality TV" status can change in a weekend.