All My Children star Debbi Morgan broke the cycle of abuse in her family that spanned three different generations after finding her current spouse, Jeffery Winston.

Throughout the years, Morgan has been very open about the domestic violence she witnessed as a child, as well as the emotional abuse she went through in her previous marriages with former spouses.

She even shared her story in her one-woman play, The Monkey on My Back. Morgan also released an autobiography titled The Monkey on My Back: A Memoir, back in June 2015.

Debbi Morgan on Breaking The Cycle of Abuse

In her book, Morgan shared that she, her mother, and her grandmother were all victims of abuse.

Born to teacher Lora and butcher George Morgan Jr., she was the older of two daughters in her family.

She says fear was the first emotion she became cognizant of after witnessing her father abuse her mother.

“When I’d see my mother crying, I would pray for daddy to die,” she shared.

Morgan started acting at 16, and it was important for her because it allowed her to hide behind a mask.

Still, she didn’t get any nurturing from her father, and she looked for affection from the men she was dating.

However, this just allowed for the cycle of abuse to continue with her as well.

Debbi Morgan and Previous Spouses

Morgan got married for the first time to actor Charles Weldon in 1980. However, their marriage only lasted for four years and they went their separate ways in 1984.

The Eve’s Bayou star moved on with Charles S. Dutton, a former convict who did time for manslaughter before becoming a Broadway star. The pair tied the knot on December 31, 1989.

Morgan opened up about what attracted her to Dutton when talking to Oprah Winfrey on Where Are They Now.

“One of the things with children growing up with domestic violent homes is that, they are drawn to people that have a lot of brute strength,” she said. “Because they feel that they are gonna protect them.”

She further explained that after she learned of him having spent time in prison and the sort of life he had lived, she found those aspects of him “seductive.”

Though her relationship with Dutton wasn’t physically abusive, Morgan shared it was the lowest point in her life. 

They eventually split in 1994. Morgan shared that when they went their separate ways, Dutton had told her she would never have been happy with him because he wasn’t “worthy to be anybody’s husband.”

Dutton hasn’t gotten married again after his divorce from Morgan.

Morgan later married photographer Donn Thompson on March 15, 1997, on a Bahamas beach. The two met when he shot her portrait for the June 1995 cover of Black Elegance.

Similar to her two previous relationships, this one was short-lived too. They ended their marriage after three years in 2000.

Debbi Morgan and Spouse Jeffery Winston

Following her split from Thompson, Morgan remained unmarried for almost a decade. She finally tied the knot once again on June 6, 2009, when she wed her current spouse, Winston.

Debbi Morgan with spouse Jeffery Winston during their 12th wedding anniversary

Debbi Morgan with spouse Jeffery Winston during their 12th wedding anniversary (Source: Instagram)

She has expressed her happiness at having broken the cycle of abuse on multiple occasions.

Morgan took to Instagram in June 2021 to mark her and her spouse’s 12th wedding anniversary.

In the caption, she revealed Winston had surprised her with a visit while she was filming in Puerto Rico.