Colton Underwood of 'The Bachelor' Fame Struggled Mentally While Filming the Hit Reality Show

Colton Underwood recently discussed how the hit dating and relationship reality television series, "The Bachelor," affected his mental health.

In a podcast interview with Reality Steve, which was released on August 13, Colton Underwood, 28, detailed how greatly his mental health suffered because of "The Bachelor."

During the interview, Underwood recalled an incident in which a female fan allegedly groped him while attending a charity event in February 2019.

Underwood said that he felt "so powerless and like such a piece of meat" during that time. That incident was a critical defining moment in his emotional well-being.

Things deteriorated for him when he wrapped production on his season of the show. He was very popular back then.

According to him, fans were fawning over him when he once attended a concert in Las Vegas with Jason Tartick and Blake Horstmann.

From that point on, the former football pro, who tested positive for COVID-19 in March, began encountering social anxiety while out in public.

"I had so much anxiety and so much depression that I was like, throughout the majority of my season [airing], I was pretty heavily medicated," he said. Underwood confessed that he took medication for anxiety and depression throughout the whole season.

Underwood and Cassie Randolph hit it off from the moment they met on the series.

In the years since Underwood's journey to discover love aired on national TV, he admitted that he has made an effort to distance himself from the series.

"There's just been too many things that I've found out about, and that has happened," Underwood explained, adding that he no longer feels comfortable working with the people behind the show.

One example was how host Chris Harrison treated Cassie Randolph when she consented to sit down for a virtual interview, Underwood said.

Randolph's remarks about their May breakup would begin a dispute on social media between the exes. Although the former couple still can't seem to share the reasons behind their breakup, Underwood confirmed that it had nothing to do with rumors of infidelity or his sexuality.

Underwood had been a contestant on season 14 of "The Bachelorette," and took part in the spin-off "Bachelor in Paradise."

Filming for "The Bachelor" happened in the fall of 2018, and the season aired in March 2019. Underwood and Randolph hit it off from the moment they met on the series.

However, as the show dictated, Underwood needed to see different young ladies to excite viewers with his journey to find a romantic partner.