Shannon Baff shed many tears on The Bachelor last night, but the 25-year-old is feeling much better now.
Earlier this week, in an interview with TV Week, Shannon revealed she suffered from anxiety and depression during her near-three month stay in the Bachelor mansion.
“If I’m being honest, I was struggling with depression in the house,” the car-care consultant told the magazine.
“I had quite a bit of anxiety. I found it difficult, and the more it went on and the closer I got to the girls, the behaviour in the house got more intense, so I became more anxious.”
Speaking to Mamamia, Shannon said she felt pressure early on after receiving the first single date with Nick Cummins.
“I had the first single date and had the pressure of maintaining that connection and having the patience as well for everyone else to be able to go on their dates and try to be fair,” she said.
“It’s a pretty intense situation. It is difficult and it is a long time you have to wait.”
She said she’s now had enough time to reflect and understand how she felt in the house.
“Like everyone else I had my down days, I think the biggest thing for me was recognising that and acknowledging that every now and then I did feel a bit down.
“I’m not ashamed to talk about it either because people do need to acknowledge if they feel that way. It’s something that needs to be talked about.”
She said there was a negative “energy” surrounding the mansion before the ‘mean girls’ were eliminated, which contributed to her struggle.
While Shannon tried to avoid confrontation, Cat, Romy and Alesha did add “unnecessary feelings” to the house.
Shannon brought two suitcases to the house – one full of clothes and another full of art supplies – and she’s glad she did.
Being creative helped her escape the craziness of the situation.
“I used to go sit outside on the grass at the mansion and paint for half a day on our downtime,” she said.
“That really helped me to gather myself and distance myself from the reality that we had going on for a bit.”
Cass and Shannon formed a bond through their love of music – Cass plays guitar and Shannon sings – and playing together was another form of escape.
Shannon said her elimination in last night’s episode was hard to watch, but she’s been overwhelmed by the response she received.
“I’ve been keeping an eye on my Instagram and everyone’s bloody lovely.”
Clearly a public favourite, she’s even had mothers message her to say they want to set her up with their sons.
She said getting back to ‘real life’ after months on the show was “like taking a step on space”, but she’s now back in the swing of things.
Months after the events we’re only now seeing on TV actually took place, she’s “doing great”.
“I’ve learned how to love myself even more which is great and I feel really happy within myself and content. I feel like I’m on a really good path at the moment,” she said.