The Bachelorette’s DeAnna Pappas won’t let public breakups stop her from looking for love.
“I’ve had my fair share of heartache — some of which played out on national television when I was just a freaking kid — and a lot of that was in my marriage and in divorce,” Pappas, 43, exclusively shared with Us Weekly while launching iHeartRadio’s “Famously Available” podcast. “I won’t allow any of that to break who I am. I just won’t, because I believe in partnership and I believe in companionship, and at the end of the day, to be honest, I believe there is someone out there for me.”
Fans met Pappas when she was a contestant on Brad Womack’s season of The Bachelor in 2007. She then became the lead of The Bachelorette season 4 one year later.
While Pappas once thought she had found her happily ever after with Stephen Stagliano, the pair — who share two kids together — split in January 2023 after 11 years of marriage.
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“I truly do believe there is someone who will love me and accept me and all of my good and all of my bad because, listen,” she said with a laugh, “I know it must be hard to hear, but there are a couple of things about me that I could probably work on and refine.”
iHeartRadio’s latest podcast may be here to help.
Hosted by The Bachelor alum Ben Higgins, “Famously Available” explores love at every stage of life, with Pappas and familiar faces from Bachelor Nation sharing their journeys, opening their hearts and inviting listeners along as they step into a new era of romance.
“I’m very different from what I was when I was 25 and I was on The Bachelor,” Pappas told Us. “I view dating and companionship very differently now than I did when I was 25 years old. I’m not in it for marriage and kids. I’ve done all of that, and there’s also some freedom in that. In the first few episodes, I was really grateful to Ben for asking some tough questions, but also some really good ones.”
Pappas said she has always been an advocate for mental health and regularly attends therapy.
Through self-work, the reality star believes she is learning more about herself and trying to avoid mistakes from her past.
“I choose people who don’t choose me, and that’s my fault,” she said. “I very much want to work on that part of me, because I think, deep down, I come off as this incredibly confident woman, and I am. But deep down, there’s this girl who doesn’t think that she is worthy of being loved and accepted as she is, and I need to nurture her and tell her that she is.”
As Pappas continues on a “path of self-exploration,” she’s excited about what the future holds.
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She’s also hopeful women will be able to relate to parts of her journey as she embarks on a new chapter whose ending is to be determined.
“I do believe in love. I think it’s really beautiful,” Pappas proclaimed. “I actually believe that’s what we’re here for is companionship and partnership and to love another human being. That’s what we’re called to do. And I really would like to have that.”
To hear more from Pappas, watch the exclusive video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly — on newsstands now.
