What Colton Underwood Wants You to Know About His Mental Health

It’s not often that we look to the contestant on The Bachelor as any sort of advocate for well-being, but here we are. Recently, current bachelor Colton Underwood took to Twitter to talk about the fact that he sees a therapist and why it’s important to him.

Underwood wrote: “On a serious note, I see a therapist regularly. This doesn’t make me crazy or delusional… it actually makes me sane. Mental health is HEALTH.”

He attached his comments to a screenshot of part of an interview he did with TV Insider where he responded to whether he gets advice from family or friends during filming.

“I’m a big advocate for mental health,” Underwood continued in the interview. “I think just as much as I want to work out and work on my physical appearance, I think it’s really important to exercise your brain as well too. I can’t say enough good things about how they provide that opportunity for me to have that space and to have that security with no microphones and cameras, so that when I do need to go vent, or be alone, or talk through things with somebody, I have that safe space.”

This isn’t the first time Underwood has talked about his mental health. Last July he opened up about his insecurities around his virginity (reminder to Underwood and everyone else that virginity is a heteronormative social construct) during the Men Tell All taping for Becca Kufrin’s Bachelorette season, then posted a follow-up message on Instagram. He wrote: “For years I hid my feelings, including depression & anxiety. You see a portion of my life and a select few scenes that help portray a picture of who I am. I’m here to tell you that I am not perfect and that it’s okay to not be okay sometimes.”

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Behind my smile are layers of insecurities, scars from my past & feelings that have been buried for years. It’s easy to show only the good/happy times on social media…I do that. I love shedding light on positive/impactful events in my life, but the truth is I have had struggles. For years I hid my feelings, including depression & anxiety. You see a portion of my life and a select few scenes that help portray a picture of who I am. I’m here to tell you that I am not perfect and that it’s okay to not be okay sometimes. If I have to continue to take cheap shots about my virginity- which is only a small part of who I am- so that others like me can feel comfortable & relate—Bring it on! While I didn’t plan on breaking down or speaking about my virginity on tonight’s episode, it is clearly something that I struggle talking about. When I heard the comments made by some of the other guys it triggered a response from me that was unexpected. While I respect their opinions, I’m not here to prove a point, say I’m better than anyone else or gain sympathy. It is what it is… my virginity shouldn’t have to be defended or used to describe me as a person.

A post shared by Colton S. Underwood (@coltonunderwood) on

Should we listen to him because he’s a privileged white guy on a TV show? Definitely not, but given our culture of toxic masculinity, it helps having people like Underwood out there adding to the conversation on mental health.

 

 

 

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