Big Red Flags In Jenna Bush Hager And Henry Hager's Marriage From Our Relationship Expert

TV personality and talk show host Jenna Bush Hager isn't afraid of commitment. On the contrary, she's been married to Henry Hager for nearly two decades. When they first met in 2004, she was just 23-year-old Jenna Bush, and Henry was working for her father, former president George W. Bush. But in a rom-com-worthy twist, their love story soon blossomed: The couple married in 2008 and have gone on to welcome three children. "I feel really lucky," Jenna said on a May 2024 episode of "Today with Hoda & Jenna," adding, "We've created a life together and I'm pretty proud of us."

However, this seemingly happy couple has recently been plagued with divorce rumors, a fire fueled by the fact that Jenna has been repeatedly spotted without her wedding ring. Jewelry isn't everything — as we know, more and more couples aren't even proposing with engagement rings. That said, it's strange for someone who already has a ring to suddenly stop wearing it. Publicly, Jenna has attributed the missing symbol to a broken finger, but audiences still have questions. How did she get the injury? Is it healed now? And, most importantly, are things really okay between Jenna and Henry?

For insight into the situation, Glam spoke exclusively to behavior and relationship expert Patrick Wanis, PhD. As an experienced life coach, trauma therapist, and creator of The Breakup Test, Dr. Wanis knows a thing or two about healthy marriages. He also recognizes the significant signs of a relationship in trouble, and whether or not there's any weight to the divorce speculations, Dr. Wanis pinpointed a few big red flags that could pose problems for Jenna and Henry's marital bliss.

There are signs that you're ready to get married, and Jenna Bush Hager recalls being eager for the commitment, even cajoling her husband, Henry Hager, to tie the knot a few months in. "I proposed to Henry after several cocktails. I was 22 years old. ... We'd only been dating three months," she revealed on "Today with Hoda & Jenna" in 2023. "He said no, but then five years later we got married." Despite her early enthusiasm, Jenna now has some regrets about settling down so quickly. "I should have dated more," she confessed on another episode of "Today with Hoda & Jenna" in May 2024 (via People). "I dated in college, I dated in high school. But I didn't date enough."

Dr. Patrick Wanis points to Jenna's "raw and unprocessed regret" as a sign that she has unmet needs in her marriage to Henry. "Jenna isn't simply offering a clue of what is missing in her life, she is waving a red flag!" Dr. Wanis exclusively tells Glam. "She didn't explore herself, her needs, or her desires before getting married. This is a common regret among many women who married young and perhaps too quickly before having a chance to develop self-awareness."

Essentially, Jenna barely had a chance to know her adult self as a single person before she became a wife. But short of inventing a time machine, can the Hagers mitigate this red flag? Dr. Wanis recommends they don't let all those what-ifs fester. "I feel it is critical for Jenna to appropriately grieve that part of her that feels she missed out on something. It is healthier to mourn the loss, accept it, and let it go rather than feed the sadness and regret," he tells us.

Coping with the bittersweet sting of regret is one thing, but Dr. Wanis warns that fixating on missed experiences could push Jenna toward dissatisfaction — or even a wandering eye. "Jenna openly says she missed out on a chapter of her individuation," the expert explains. "That opens the door to 'what if' fantasies, emotional restlessness, as well as potential resentment towards her partner, family, and life — and disengagement or covert yearning."

He may be on to something, as Jenna has shown evidence of some fantasies that don't star her husband. On a late-2023 episode of "Today with Jenna & Friends," she awkwardly joked about the attractiveness of bookish men, saying, "If they have little eyeglasses, too, just sitting reading, and if they're reading something I respect? I mean that could be a means for an affair" (via Us Weekly). Was it just a joke? Maybe. But Jenna got weirdly defensive about the jest, later saying, "I shouldn't have said that! I went too far."

It may sound like the Hagers are showing signs of falling out of love, but Dr. Wanis clarifies that Jenna's seeming discontent doesn't mean that the relationship is broken. Rather, it just suggests that she and Henry need to find ways to meet her unexplored needs. "Although she is in love with Henry, there is still something missing for her," Dr. Wanis exclusively tells Glam. "This is a threat to her marriage and happiness because it can negatively affect their intimacy unless it is properly acknowledged and resolved."

Jenna Bush Hager's dating commentary on "Today with Hoda & Jenna" not only implied a few unfulfilled desires but hinted that she struggles to prioritize her needs. "I think when we were growing up, you have this dream of the prince," Jenna said during the discussion. "I went into relationships ... thinking, 'Is this one going to go the distance?' ... As opposed to, 'Do I want him? Do I like him?'" The host added that she should have explored more casual dating but felt held back by social pressures: "Girls are taught that, 'Be careful or otherwise you'll get a bad reputation.'"

Dr. Wanis thinks these concerns eclipsed young Jenna's authenticity and might still pose problems for her today. "She had to suppress her emotions and expression, and she had to seek the approval of others. ... This dynamic might result in her withholding her own needs or feelings and making everyone else's emotions the priority," Dr. Wanis explains exclusively to Glam. "This can negatively impact the marriage because it can lead to conflict avoidance, subtle self-betrayal, and, if unresolved, it can create an internal tug-of-war." In other words, Jenna may censor herself to avoid creating friction at home. However, Dr. Wanis thinks she needs to take a different tack.

"Jenna and Henry need to have a conversation where they can both freely express their needs, desires, and regrets," the therapist suggests. "Their focus needs to be 'Let's evolve together — intentionally — our love, partnership, and the life we choose to continue to build.'" If they do this, their future might be smooth sailing.