A former lead from “The Bachelorette” took to social media to defend herself after receiving upsetting comments from followers. Clare Crawley has received criticism over the years from Bachelor Nation fans over numerous issues. In this case, however, she felt she needed to reply to what some people had been writing in messages lately.

She questioned, “Have people just lost compassion when they hide behind keyboards?”

Here’s what you need to know:

Clare Crawley Has Been Taking Steroids to Manage Autoimmune Issues

On April 25, Crawley shared several videos via her Instagram Stories. She showed two harsh private Instagram messages she had received and responded to them in her video.

The first message “The Bachelorette” star shared read, “Too much work done to your face. So sad.”

The second message read, “Your face is swollen looks bad. I’m not hating but we see that you have had something done no need to post random a year later about wisdom teeth lol desprate (sic) content.”

In both cases, Crawley cropped out the user information so the message senders would remain anonymous.

She began by admitting, “So, I never know how to come on here and start or have these conversations. But, comments like this have been, just, in my DMs [direct messages] and I’d probably be lying if I said it didn’t bother me.”

Crawley held back tears as she spoke. She also paused recording at one point to compose herself before continuing her response.

“Here’s the thing. I, or anybody else, should not have to come on social media and defend their body, their choices, their health, anything like that,” she pointed out.

“The Bachelorette” star noted she felt she had been “pretty dang open” about her health struggles. As Crawley shared with ABC News in March 2023, she removed her breast implants in July 2021 because of issues they caused.

For eight years after getting her implants, Crawley experienced rashes all over her body. Other issues developed as well, and she eventually had her implants removed. Unfortunately, ongoing health problems, including autoimmune issues, continued.

Crawley noted in her Instagram Stories she is constantly working on healing her body.  She mentioned “not being able to carry my own babies, going through surrogacy because of my autoimmune stuff.”

“The Bachelorette” alum explained, “The autoimmune affected my life deeply and I’m still going through the healing of it.” She further shared that while she felt she shouldn’t have to explain it, she has been taking steroids to combat her autoimmune issue flare-ups.

She said she had not had plastic surgery on her face. Rather, the steroids made her face puffy. Crawley admitted she has felt very self-conscious about it.

‘The Bachelorette’ Star Said the Negative Messages Are ‘Constant’

Crawley shared, “I think just having a baby, being a new mom, being a stepmom, like, there’s a lot of stress that comes right now with a new baby and stuff and while it’s amazing and I love it, I still want to be the best mom that I can be.”

Part of trying to be the best mom she can be is taking steroids to manage the autoimmune issues. She noted the steroid usage and puffy face are temporary. “I’ve had to take it to focus on healing myself and to be present and to be a wife and a mom and focus on the positive and the healing.”

Shortly after posting the video on her Instagram Story, Crawley shared another screenshot of a message she received.

The message read, “Oh my goodness sweetheart!! You were so perfectly beautiful before. You’re still stunning and I love you, but you don’t look like you anymore…too much work done. Your beauty from the inside is what I love most about you!”

Crawley wrote “No thank you” under the screenshot. She also explained, “Like I said normally these comments don’t bother me, but I’ve been trying my hardest to stay strong and heal my body, but these messages are constant now.”

“The Bachelorette” star added, “Even the backhanded ones just blow my mind how cruel they are.”

Fans Had Crawley’s Back

Later, “The Bachelorette” star posted a new Instagram Story. “I truly love you guys and thank you for letting me vent for a minute.”

Crawley continued, “Back to focusing on healing, and picking these gorgeous lemons in our back yard. The little things that make me happy.”

“The Bachelorette” added, “I’m about to make some fresh mint lemonade, put Rowie down, and watch a good movie with my sweet husband that is forever making me feel deeply loved.”

While Crawley felt beaten down by the negative messages she had been receiving, a lot of “Bachelorette” fans shared comments on Reddit supporting her.

“This is awful and sad. I noticed her face looked different yesterday and guess what, I simply wished her well in my head and moved on with my life. Contacting someone over something like that is so nasty. I feel sorry for her,” one Redditor wrote.

“My heart breaks for her – she’s obviously going through a lot…then random people on the internet are so cruel for no reason,” another Redditor noted.

“I cannot imagine thinking someone looks odd and then TELLING THEM THAT,” someone else added.