Colton Underwood Talked About The Importance Of Having An On Set 'Bachelor' Therapist

It's so easy to get caught up in the silliness and drama of The Bachelor, that audiences may often forget these are real people putting themselves out there. In a new interview, Colton Underwood talks about seeing an on-set therapist while shooting, perhaps becoming the first lead of the show to be open about the topic. While peeling back the curtain, Underwood is not ashamed, nor should he be, to talk about his therapy sessions, and encourages his fans to take care of their mental health too.

On Monday, the Bachelor star tweeted a portion of his interview with TV Insider, writing the caption, "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." In the interview, he opened up about how supported he's felt, mentally, during the chaos of the Bachelor process.

"They actually provide a therapist on the show, so any time I wanted to meet with my therapist I could, which was nice..." he explained in the interview. "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 he's been transparent about mental health. "For years I hid my feelings, including depression and anxiety," he wrote on Instagram in July. Now, months later, he continues spreading the same sentiments in hopes of eliminating the stigma. "I'm a big advocate for mental health," he told TV Insider in the new 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."

Colton also spoke about his methods for venting and dissecting his emotional state when there isn't a therapist on hand. One route? Hashing it out with his parents. "The interesting thing is the relationship between my mom and me is more... I feel like we're best friends more than mother/son. Me and my dad have a really good relationship too; I can lean on him for a lot of advice," he continued. "But my go-to member in my family to vent to is my dog, Sniper."

This isn't the first time, however, there's been talk of mental health professionals on The Bachelor set. In a 2010 article by ABC, the show's resident psychologist at the time, Dr. Catherine Selden, spoke about their work on the series. "We want to make sure that people are going to be OK with coping with the stress involved, and make sure that they are going to be offered the help that they need if it's the case." She also said all 50 finalists had to take part in an extensive psychological evaluation.

While Colton has been on the receiving end of some flak throughout his season, this discussion certainly shouldn't be another reason why.