You’ve got to hand it to Abbie Chatfield.
The stunning 23-year-old property analyst just got her heart completely smashed into a million pieces on national television, and has had to keep her heartbreak a secret for months.
But last night after The Bachelor finale aired, Abbie was finally able to tell her side of the story.
As well as her explanation on Instagram, Abbie posted a candid selfie video to a private Facebook group, explaining exactly how she was fairing after last night’s finale.
Taking to the Shameless Facebook page, an online community set up by the founders of the popular pop culture podcast, Abbie got real about exactly how tough the last few months have been.
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“Hey everyone, I just thought I’d post a wine-drunk little video to the group,” Abbie joked, as she went makeup-free in the spontaneous late-night video.
“I just want to say thank you for everyone’s support and also even just interesting dialogue around the whole Bachelor world,” she said.
“I’ve been in this group watching your comments and even when some of you didn’t agree with me or didn’t think that I was saying the right thing, I took it on board and I have been trying to become a better person from this.”
Abbie looked stunning in the candid late-night Facebook video.
(Credit: Facebook)Abbie opened up about how challenging the past few months have been for her, between filming ending and the finale airing.
“I am quite young, as we’ve all heard, all season, so yeah look, that was rough to watch,” Abbie said, referring to watching the finale back.
“I’ve obviously been crying a fair bit, but yeah, I’ll get through it.”
She revealed she had been “crying a lot” and developed “stress acne” over the past few months.
(Credit: Facebook)The Brisbane beauty has been inundated with messages of support from women who disagreed with her portrayal as the “villain” of the season, arguing Australian viewers are simply uncomfortable with seeing a strong women own her sexuality.
“I just want to say thank you for the amazing women who have commented supporting me and defended me and messaged me personally. It means a lot, like every single message helped me get through the day,” Abbie said.
She also revealed the stress had taken a toll on her physical health as well.
“Stress acne, has happened for the past six months, so hopefully I get better skin,” she said.
Abbie’s video received hundreds of messages of support from fans, including former Big Brother contestant Tully Smyth, who joked: “From one reality TV ‘bad girl’ to another…. at least you looked hot doing it.”
Viewers were left divided over Abbie’s shock response to being dumped during the finale, when Matt revealed his “heart belongs to someone else”.
After questioning why he had chosen Chelsie over her, and why he hadn’t sent her home earlier, Abbie left with a cold goodbye.
“As long as you’re happy that’s all that matters,” she said, kissing him on the cheek and swiftly walking away.
Getting in to the car as she left, Abbie said to the crew: “Get me the f— away from here. I want to go home.”
Then, she let it all out with an emotional rant.
“I feel fine I’m mostly just mad about the flight home now,” she began. “Honestly maybe I don’t love him, I’m not even upset.”
“I’ll get over it as soon as it airs,” Abbie continued as she drove away.
Revealing she was “embarrassed”, Abbie began to tear up as she continued talking to producers and processing the split.
“I don’t… it’s really hard and I think I feel silly for thinking it would work out with Matt. I will get over this and I’m so resilient, Matt. I never thought I would feel this way from this experience.”
WATCH BELOW: See Abbie and Matt’s intense sexual chemistry. Story continues after video.
But in an Instagram post she shared immediately after the finale, Abbie revealed her reaction was due to shock.
“The only way I can describe this moment is complete and utter shock,” Abbie wrote of her final moments with Matt.
“I was numb. I couldn’t and didn’t want to feel anything. I had felt for weeks that what Matt and I had was real and I trusted him wholeheartedly when he told me how he felt about me.
“From hometowns, I forgot the cameras were there. It didn’t feel like we were filming a show at all, it felt like we had this real relationship built in a little bubble of “The Bachelor” and we would be out soon and able to live a normal life.
“Hearing Matt say ‘my heart is with someone else’ reminded me that we were filming and that Matt had to make a difficult decision, and he did not see in me what I saw in him. I felt silly for ever imagining Matt would love me. It was like emotional whiplash. I was so confused and it felt like I was in a dystopian reality.
“The second the cameras turned off, I sobbed. I screamed. I couldn’t breathe. I didn’t think think this would be how we would end. I spent weeks crying about this relationship that had almost no closure. I still haven’t fully healed from my relationship with Matt, but I know he and the gorgeous woman he is with are happy, and that’s all that matters.”
Hang in there Abbie – we’ve got your back!
