AceShowbiz - The break-up between Chelsea Handler and Jo Koy may have come as a shock to their fans, but for Handler, it was a necessary step towards preserving her values and sanity. In a revealing episode of the "Armchair Expert" podcast, she elaborated on the reasons behind their split and the growth she experienced through it all.

The former "Chelsea Lately" host shared that she "did not want to break up" with Jo Koy but felt compelled to as their differing values made it impossible to continue.

"I felt like it was a decision between having a relationship and being full-on or choosing myself and my sanity - sanity is an overstatement - but I would have compromised my own value system," she explained to host Dax Shepard. Despite her love for Koy, the couple's long-term goals were misaligned.

Handler further clarified that what she perceived as a "mature healthy relationship" was vastly different from Koy's perspective. "We had a couple of instances where it was obvious that we had different ideas about togetherness and the amount of time we would spend together and the expectations of me as his girlfriend, which to me were very outdated, old-fashioned and not going to work," she stated.

Reflecting on their nearly year-long relationship, Handler emphasized that the biggest takeaway was discovering her ability to be "in love in a vulnerable, mature, healthy way." She knew when it was time to end things, and did so maturely, choosing not to dwell on any negative aspects. "I didn't for one second doubt any of my decision-making," she noted, adding that Koy helped boost her confidence significantly.

The pair, friends for over two decades, began dating in September 2021 and split in July 2022. At the time, Handler mentioned on Instagram that the split was mutual and "it is best for us to take a break from our relationship right now." She also credited Koy with her "renewed" faith in men.

However, Handler later indicated that their friendship had not fully recovered post-breakup. In a December 2022 interview with Brooke Shields on the "Now What?" podcast, she revealed that she hadn't spoken to Koy for a while, waiting for him to take some "accountability" for their split.

"There has to be some accountability, you know what I mean? Like, from him about what happened, because it was just ridiculous," Handler said, suggesting that a true friendship could not be established until then.