Breakups are hard — just ask Kaitlyn Bristowe. The Bachelorette alum opened up about how she and ex-fiancé Shawn Booth felt leading up to their “tough” split.
Bristowe, 33, addressed her former relationship in an interview published with Cosmopolitan on Tuesday, May 7, explaining what it was like to experience such a public breakup. “We were hanging on to that for quite a lot of time because we were both so anxious about it, knowing that it would be so public,” she said. “It was really tough because there are so many people who believe in your relationship and who don’t see the things that go on behind closed doors. But it becomes their business, because they’re so invested in the show and you as a couple.”
The Canada native continued: “But we knew it would pass and that sharing it was the right thing to do, so I just stayed off social media after. It was really tough to go through that publicly.”
Us Weekly confirmed the news of the “Off the Vine With Kaitlyn Bristowe” podcast host’s broken engagement with Booth, 31, in November 2018. The pair originally began their relationship on The Bachelorette season 11 in 2015 and got engaged on the finale. The former couple had been together for three years before their split.
Bristowe and Booth said the decision to part ways came through “thoughtful, respectful consideration.”
“Even though we are parting as a couple, we’re very much committed to remaining friends,” the former pair said in a joint statement to Us at the time. “We have both evolved as people, which is taking us in different directions, but with the hope that we will continue to support each other in new ways”
Bristowe is currently dating fellow Bachelorette alum Jason Tartick. They confirmed their relationship in January — two months after her breakup with Booth.
The Dew Edit designer was initially reserved about post-engagement dating because she’s a public figure, who boasts an impressive 1.7 million followers on Instagram.
“When I was with Shawn, I knew what I wanted and I knew what I deserved. I also knew I was happy on my own,” Bristowe shared with Cosmopolitan. “I think that’s what made the transition out of the relationship into doing my own thing a little easier — I felt empowered. I was nervous to date again only because people follow me, and I didn’t know when it was too soon to share something. But I see a therapist and am constantly working on myself.”
