Former Bachelorette Trista Sutter He reflects on the changes with the franchise since he took the helm in 2003

“I'm so grateful that social media didn't exist when I was on bachelor And bachelorette", Sutter, 52, said TV Insider In an interview published on Sunday, January 19. “We had message boards, and I was a glutton for punishment and would go read them. There were trolls back then, but they couldn't access you directly. You had to read what their comments were on the message boards. I did it, and it wasn't fun."

She continued, "I had a really hard time. I'm really sensitive and people would come up to me and say I'm sure I'd have a really hard time with that. People have dealt with death threats from the show, just being themselves and trying to find love. It's kind of crazy. .it has completely changed.”

More than two decades since finding The One Ryan SutterTrista continues to watch the hit ABC reality show. (Trista and Ryan, now 50, got engaged the time bachelorette Season 1 and tied the knot in 2003. They share son Maxwell, 16, and daughter Blakesley, 15.)

"I think the premise of the show is still why I watch it, and that's people finding love in very unconventional ways," Trista said. "That will never change for me. When we moved to Colorado and started a family, it was a conscious decision to create a quieter life around marriage and away from the wild ride that followed. I loved our life and we Raised the kids in the mountains and now we're in Denver."

As Trista recently tried her hand Another reality show with Special Forces: The World's Toughest TestRyan sparked concerns that their marriage was in jeopardy when he shared a series of cryptic posts via social media.

Trista, who was away shooting the Fox reality show when the rumors broke, could not address the speculation surrounding their relationship or explain why she was away — until her casting was revealed.

"Everyone is quick to assume the worst," Trista says exclusively. our weekly Rumors surrounding his marriage. “I think it's human nature, honestly. I mean, I didn't know what happened to the world. I'm like, 'You're all out of your mind.' Sorry, but why the big fuss about this?”

Trista recalls her phone being flooded with text messages from concerned loved ones. “I had people texting me nonstop, 'Are you okay? What's going on? Are you having a nervous breakdown? Are you divorced? Are you having a trial separation? What's going on?'' said Trista. “I'm like, 'No, no, no, no, no,' to everything. You'll find out why and it will all make sense."

Despite the chaos, Trista put a positive spin on the rumours. "I have to say it Made me feel better People who actually care,” Trista said. “We have been married for 21 years. The show was really long ago, and it was so humbling and so sweet to me that people still cared, even though it was so chaotic."