Maci Bookout Reveals Where She Stands with Ex Ryan Edwards Amid Prison Sentence, Legal Woes (Exclusive)

The Teen Mom: The Next Chapter star and husband Taylor McKinney spoke with TooFab about where they stand currently with Bentley's father ahead of the new season, which sees Maci and Ryan having a pretty healthy coparenting relationship despite their past battles.

While the two have not seen eye to eye in the past, amid Edwards' own issues with substance abuse, they came to a place of understanding following a pretty emotional breakthrough on the most recent Teen Mom reunion. According to Maci, that communication has continued -- even as Edwards was sentenced to prison time back in April on harassment charges, following charges of possession of a controlled substance, DUI and violating the terms of his probation.

According to The Sun, he's set to be released from prison and sent to rehab.

"I think time definitely helped ... us being able to genuinely have a conversation and make commitments to each other as far as what our role is to make a better relationship and really start a relationship, because we hadn't had one in so long," Bookout told TooFab.

"Obviously, with all the crap that went down and him being in jail now, we're still in a good place and actually speak to each other very consistently and often," she continued. "It's just obviously different now because it's not in person and he's not out here in the real world. But we're still on a good, going on a good direction."

On the season premiere, Taylor makes it clear he's not exactly thrilled about Ryan's reintegration into Bentley's life, as the teen is seen meeting up for a solo dinner with his dad for the first time in years. His hesitation comes from a place of protection, not wanting to see Bentley get hurt.

"You'll see it evolve," he said of his feelings toward Ryan and coparenting. "In my opinion there's a fine line between trying to protect. Bentley and not get in the way of him having a relationship with his father, trying to find that balance and I don't know, it's tough."

Edwards' most recent legal issues aren't a first for the family, meaning, as Maci pointed out, this isn't the first time they've been put in a position where they have to have less-than-ideal conversations with their son about the situation.

"With Bentley being older and unfortunately this not being the first time that something has happened, Bentley and I have always had an extremely close relationship, but also a very open and honest relationship," she said of how they handle these scenarios as a family.

"So for us I think just being straightforward and, 'Here's what's going on,' and then really just making sure that Bentley knows that we're there for him and if needs anything or has questions or wants to talk about how to deal with something, just being there to support him through it," Maci continued. "Honestly, therapy for him definitely helps. Making sure he knows he can text, call, FaceTime his therapist anytime he needs to, giving him that extra person that knows what they're doing professionally is also a big difference maker I would say."

Maci has also been getting her own outside help, by starting to go to Al-Anon meetings. The organization is meant for relatives and friends of alcoholics, who can lean on and share their similar experiences with one another.

"That's a game changer," said Maci. "It's way different than what I expected it to be, it is nothing like that."

"It's very healing and it's so much more about yourself, rather than the addict," she explained. "It's such a safe space to kind of look yourself in the mirror and work on yourself. I think that it just overall kind of helps every relationship you have after that."

Maci added that her costars are also great when it comes to advice for coparenting, telling TooFab that they can offer "fresh perspectives from someone that's not directly involved who can give you a different point of view" on how to handle any particular situation. She also said that their group humor is also a huge help, adding, "Just being able to talk s--- about it sometimes helps a lot."

Teen Mom: The Next Chapter premieres with two episodes July 19 on MTV, with new episodes each Wednesday.