The Bachelorette star Katie Thurston has returned to Instagram after production wrapped on Season 17 of the ABC reality dating series.
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"Can't start a healthy relationship without being healthy," Katie captioned the video, hinting that she may have found love on The Bachelorette this year after getting eliminated from Matt James' season.
"Got my vaccine today! #covidvacccine," she added.
This marked Katie's first social-media post in two months given she had been away filming The Bachelorette in New Mexico until her season just ended on Saturday, April 24.
Katie's journey to find love concluded unexpectedly early and "ahead of schedule," according to an Us Weekly source, because "Katie was "in control" and decisive over the men she wanted to date or send packing.
Katie's entire season taped at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, where cast and crew were required to quarantine and follow safety measures amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, according to Reality Steve spoiler blogger Steve Carbone.
In Katie's Instagram video about the COVID-19 vaccine, she told her followers, "Oh, good morning. Did I sleep on my couch? Yes. But is today a great day for a vaccine? Absolutely. Am I going to shower first? No, it's early. Who showers before 10?"
Katie recorded herself getting dressed, brushing her teeth and throwing a hat on her head.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
"Last night's makeup -- today's smokey eye," Katie joked, before saying on a serious note, "Look, I hate getting shots, but I'm not doing this for me."
Katie explained, "I do it for my mom, who is an essential worker. Or my sister, who is pregnant. Or my nieces and nephews, who are still in school. I do it for my grandparents. My friends. My community. For you."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOWKatie showed footage of herself receiving the shot and then urged, "Do your part. Get the vaccine! Let's fight this together. I got vaccinated. Have you?"
ABC had announced Katie's cast of 34 potential bachelors last month, just a few days before filming began on March 22.
Season 17 of The Bachelorette premieres with a two-hour episode Monday, June 7 at 8PM ET/PT on ABC and will be hosted by former The Bachelorette stars Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe.
"Tayshia and Kaitlyn can relate to Katie's journey in a lot of different ways, which you'll see play out, so it was nice to have them there to help out with whatever situation came up," the source told Us.
"Tayshia had fun and loved doing it. She and Kaitlyn made a great team."
ABC hired Kaitlyn and Tayshia to fill in for longtime host Chris Harrison after he announced in February he'd be "stepping aside" from his hosting duties to educate himself on racism in society on a "profound" level.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Chris came under fire during Matt's The Bachelor season after he defended Season 25 contestant Rachael Kirkconnell's racially-ignorant and racially-insensitive actions in the last several years during a controversial interview he had with Extra's Rachel Lindsay, who starred as the first Black Bachelorette.
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"They act professional, they're on time and are helping the franchise as much as they can in this funky situation," the insider revealed, although there was reportedly a learning curve and the crew missed Chris on the set.
Unlike the seasoned Chris Harrison -- who hosted the franchise ever since The Bachelor premiered nearly 20 years ago -- Kaitlyn and Tayshia reportedly had "to do a lot of retakes" during filming.
"It's a lot of memorizing lines," the insider continued. "They didn't have years of experience before hopping on. Scenes that could be done in one take with Chris can now take, like, two hours."
Tayshia teased during a recent appearance on the Going to Bed with Garcelle podcast that the world will see something "fresh and new" with Katie's season.
"I think that people are looking for change in the franchise," Tayshia said following the Chris and Rachael racism controversy as well as years of diversity lacking in the franchise.
"And I really think that this is something that they're going to be really excited about," she added.
It remains unclear who will host Season 18 of The Bachelorette starring Michelle Young when it films later this year and premieres in Fall 2021.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
