'The Bachelorette' alum Zac Clark reportedly has "trust issues" after Tayshia Adams split

The Bachelorette alum Zac Clark reportedly has "trust issues" after his difficult breakup with Tayshia Adams.


Tayshia's representative announced in late November 2021 that Zac and the Season 16 The Bachelorette star had decided to part ways and end their engagement, and Tayshia first publicly mentioned the split and called herself "heartbroken" while co-hosting The Bachelorette: The Men Tell All for Season 18, which aired in early December.

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Now that more than two months have passed, a source said Zac is doing "fine" but he doesn't feel ready to jump back into the dating pool yet, Us Weekly reported.

"He hasn't started going on dates but is open to it," the source told the magazine.


The 36-year-old addiction specialist's friends have been "trying to help him move on" from Tayshia by pushing him to join an exclusive dating app like Raya.

But Zac is allegedly reluctant to meet a new woman since he's a public figure now and his dating life will be splashed across headlines.

"He gets excited about the idea of dating again but has trust issues from being in the spotlight," the source shared.

"His biggest fear is getting close to someone, breaking up, and then that girl sharing with the world about their relationship."

Zac wants to "build that trust with his next partner," especially because his breakup with Tayshia, 31, was highly publicized late last year.


In the meantime, the marathon runner is focusing on his career and maintaining his sobriety.

"He's working on Release Recovery and has some upcoming projects in the works," the source said. "He's still very much sober and has been hanging out with friends in the city. He's been turning to friends and family for advice."

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While both Zac and Tayshia are apparently trying to move on with their lives, an insider told Us that they are "still in communication" because there are "some lingering matters" that "haven't been resolved yet," such as projects they were working on together.

"It seems like there isn't closure yet," the insider claimed, adding however that there "isn't any bad blood between them."


Tayshia and Zac haven't revealed any details about their split, but Us reported late last year the former couple "couldn't fully commit to each other" due to their busy schedules and they "eventually realized it wasn't going to work and their relationship ran its course."

Tayshia and Zac got engaged when Season 16 of The Bachelorette wrapped filming in August 2020, and they broke up nearly one year after their engagement aired on ABC in December 2020.

Season 11 The Bachelorette star Kaitlyn Bristowe, who co-hosted the show's seventeenth and eighteenth seasons alongside Tayshia, told the magazine in December that Tayshia "was beside herself" while filming The Men Tell All for Michelle Young's season.

According to Reality Steve spoiler blogger Steve Carbone, The Men Tell All special filmed on November 22, the same day Tayshia's publicist issued the statement about Tayshia and Zac's breakup.

"I'm so proud of her for being so professional and being able to show up and put a smile on her face and do a great job hosting while going through it," Kaitlyn said at the time.


"I know she was just really struggling that day because the news had broke, and she was really upset... I saw her in the trailer so upset, she was having anxiety. And I was like, 'You don't have to address this if you don't want to.'"

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On the The Men Tell All for Season 18 of The Bachelorette, Kaitlyn pointed out how Tayshia wasn't wearing her engagement ring.

Tayshia, quiet and hesitant, went on to reveal, "Umm, all in all, all I have to say is that I am heartbroken. But we tried really hard and I love him very much. And I'm not sure what the future hold."

Tayshia, trying to hold back tears, acknowledged her situation was "really tough," before walking off the stage in attempt to compose herself for interviews with Michelle's cast of The Bachelorette suitors.


However, Tayshia did not reveal any specifics on why her relationship with Zac failed, and fans weren't even sure whether the breakup was mutual.

Tayshia explained in early December why she didn't say more about her split from Zac while confirming the breakup news on that Men Tell All broadcast.

"I really said all I had to say on that stage," Tayshia told The Bachelorette 14 star Becca Kufrin on the "Bachelor Happy Hour" podcast at the time.

"I don't really have anything to add to it just because I'm still going through it all."

Tayshia added, "And yeah, I spoke my peace. And one day, when I feel like I have more to say, I'm sure we can talk about it all... I am definitely hanging in there."

Tayshia called that day of filming The Men Tell All "really tough" and "very heavy" for her.


"I'm really happy I was able to be surrounded by all of you guys and be supported by that. But it doesn't make any of that easier," Tayshia noted.

Rumors Tayshia and Zac had ended their engagement and decided to part ways first broke in mid-November.

A source told Life & Style at the time that Tayshia and Zac were "on a break" after Tayshia had been spotted multiple times filming one of her former podcasts without her engagement ring earlier in the month.

"They're definitely taking some time apart to figure things out," the source explained about the couple. "It doesn't look good."

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Tayshia's representative confirmed to People several days later, "Tayshia Adams and Zac Clark are no longer a couple."


The split came as a big surprise to fans considering Tayshia and Zac had put on a united front on November 7 when they ran the New York City Marathon together, and Zac gushed about his then-fiancee on Instagram the following day.

Not only did Zac call the world "a better place" with Tayshia in it, but he also wrote, "The untold story about @tayshia is one of humility and courage. She would never tell the world how truly inspiring her performance was yesterday at the @nycmarathon but I will."

Although Tayshia was apparently experiencing chronic knee and back pain at the time, Zac said his then-fiancee "is allergic to excuses" and "could have bailed at anytime in the past four months" but chose to stick with her training.

"Her PR team would have handled it, but that is just not who she is. She said she was going to do something and she did it. No one will remember her 'time' but the fact that she went out and ran... this race in 4 hours and 40 minutes is heroic and shows the power of believing in yourself," Zac gushed.

"I will be forever grateful to have had a front row seat to her performance yesterday."

And ahead of the big race, Zac told People that he was excited things were about to calm down for Tayshia and himself.


"We're really looking forward to kicking back after we get done and really spending some time here in New York," Zac said.

"With our schedules and how everything's worked out, we're just super excited to take advantage of what's here and eat some good food and explore a little bit and make sure that she really feels like she knows New York."

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Speculation that Tayshia and Zac had broken up also surfaced in March when Tayshia was similarly seen without her engagement ring on, however she subsequently denied the couple had split.

"There's all these weird rumors circulating around that I'm not wearing my ring and that Zac and I are broken up. I don't know what is happening," Tayshia said on Instagram Stories at the time.

She added, "I was in [Los Angeles] for a hot minute and was able to finally drop off my ring and get it sized."


Tayshia reportedly followed up her video with a post on her Instagram Story that read, "Not gonna lie, I don't like getting DMs putting this weird energy into the universe lol. I love that there's so much love & support around our relationship but please don't put unnecessary rumors/pressure on us."

Around that same time, Zac had to reassure fans that his mother accidentally stopped following Tayshia on Instagram and there wasn't a falling out or intentional slight on his mom's part.

Following their televised engagement in 2020, Tayshia decided to move to New York City to be with her man, but she also kept her own place in California.

In a February 2021 interview with Marie Claire, the previously-divorced The Bachelorette star revealed she had decided to keep her own place "for peace of mind" since this is "not [her] first rodeo."

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"Coming out of that [TV environment], I think we had a strong foundation, and then it's about, like, digging in together and getting to know each other and understanding each other's lives," Zac told Us of his post-show journey with Tayshia.


"We're both passionate, driven, busy human beings. And with that, we need to remind ourselves to work each other into it and we've done [that]."

Zac had continued, "So yeah, a couple months after, there were some ups and downs, of course, and, like, well-documented, but at the end of the day, it's all good right now... There are plans to get married, but it's been a wild start to the year."

Prior to starring on The Bachelorette 16, Tayshia competed for Colton Underwood's heart on The Bachelor's 23rd season, which aired in early 2019.

Colton eliminated Tayshia during his round of overnight Fantasy Suite dates.

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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski