Clayton Echard, the previously leading man on The Bachelor, had a very controversial season.
Not only did he have one of the most villainous women ever in Shanae Ankney, who poked fun at mental health, bullied the other women, and lied over and over, but he made choices throughout the season that Bachelor Nation didn’t agree with.
Bachelor Nation is a vocal group, and when they saw some decisions and actions come from Clayton that they didn’t like, they made their voices heard loud and clear.
However, Clayton has been through the filming, the aired show, and now the aftermath of one of the hardest, yet rewarding, journey of his life.
Clayton Echard talked about how he hit rock bottom after The Bachelor
Clayton recently took to his Instagram page to put up a photo that his girlfriend, and ultimate winner of the show, Susie Evans, took one day before the After The Final Rose show.
While Clayton looked out the window in the photo, he wrote a long message to go with it.
Clayton stated about the picture, “In this moment, I was at rock bottom. I knew what was coming and realized my reality was much further from what I had ever expected. As I looked out the window, I questioned who I was? What had I become? Where did everything go wrong? Why me?”
In his reflection part of the writing, Clayton talked about how just six months before this picture was taken, he was excitedly awaiting the women at the mansion as the limos pulled up.
He talked about how lucky he felt and how grateful he was that he was chosen as The Bachelor; however, he then revealed, “6 months later, I was staring out this window wondering how much worse things could get.”
Clayton was able to reflect on everything and make peace with himself
As Clayton has had the opportunity to take a step back now, he has realized some things that he couldn’t quite see while he was in the thick of things.
He wrote, “I was too busy trying to defend my actions and my character, instead of accepting full responsibility for not only what I had done, but for who all I hurt. Often, we are so concerned with explaining ourselves that we don’t realize the explanations sometimes hurt more than the actions. Because they appear as excuses and nothing more.”
Clayton went on to say that he feels like he has finally learned his lesson through therapy and reflection. He knows he hurt people despite doing what he thought was best at the time and following his heart.
He declared, “I have been able to finally see the reality of what all I had done … But I am a work in progress and always will be. Because perfection is impossible to obtain, we can all be better than we were the day before. So that’s what I’ll continue to strive to do.”
He ended his piece by thanking everyone who backed him, defended him, and supported him through everything. Clayton revealed that without these people, he would still be wondering who he was while looking out that same window as he posted.
Clayton’s final statement was when talking about knowing his true self and worth, “But I now know … and for that, I am finally at peace. #mentalhealth.”
While Clayton had to go through obstacles, hardships, and hurt, he found the love of his life in Susie Evans, and it seems he also found himself as well.
The Bachelorette premieres Monday, July 11th, on ABC.