The Golden Bachelor winner Theresa Nist has revealed that she wanted to wait months more before announcing her divorce from Gerry Turner.
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Gerry and Theresa got engaged on The Golden Bachelor finale, which aired in November 2023, and then they got married on January 4 for a live televised wedding special on ABC.
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Only three months later, Gerry and Theresa shocked fans by announcing their split during an April episode of ABC's Nightline, and Gerry filed for divorce from Theresa that same month.
During a recent appearance on "The Ben & Ashley I: Almost Famous Podcast," Theresa explained why she and Gerry had decided to go public with the news of their breakup so quickly instead of milking their celebrity status as The Golden Bachelor franchise's first happy couple a little longer.
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"I know, why didn't we do that?!" Theresa quipped in her interview with Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti. "You could ask Gerry why. We could've milked it for a little while, I know."
Theresa admitted going from The Bachelor "world" to suddenly "dropping everything" was a huge life change for the former couple.
"Because we were offered things that we then couldn't pursue -- some really great things and some really big things," Theresa confirmed.
"But I think I do know the answer to it and can divulge it. I never would've milked something that wasn't honest. I would not have done that."
But Theresa went on to confess, "I probably would have waited longer because of The Golden Bachelorette."
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"I was willing to wait longer because I didn't want to put a damper on [Joan Vassos'] season," she added. "I wanted to wait until, kind of, that was over."
Joan's The Golden Bachelorette season began filming in late June, and production on the series wrapped in early August.
Theresa therefore apparently wishes she and Gerry had kept their breakup a secret for several months.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Ashley pointed out how Gerry and Theresa's split tainted many viewers' opinions of The Golden Bachelor franchise and whether the process can really work.
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Many Fans also questioned Gerry's authenticity and dating history before Joan's The Golden Bachelorette season was about to begin.
Joan's journey to find love premiered September 18 on ABC, three months after Theresa and Gerry finalized their divorce in June.
"I didn't want to disappoint people. I felt so badly about people who were so disappointed, because I was disappointed," Theresa admitted.
"I didn't want to hurt people, because it was such a fairy tale and it was beautiful. It really was real, and we really believed it."
Theresa -- who felt "bad" about the end of her marriage to Gerry -- acknowledged that the former couple was caught up in a "whirlwind" of fame and euphoria after their The Golden Bachelor stint.
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"It started in the mansion, when you're presented with someone in their best possible light and then afterwards, you're always in an exciting situation, so you're both at your best," Theresa explained.
"You're both excited by the experience that you're in, so that's exciting and you're not in your regular, mundane life... You're in Times Square; I've never done that before, and that was absolutely wonderful. And to be on the Live with Kelly and Mark Show, we were enjoying that ride together and were very happy then."
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Because Theresa and Gerry were "very excited" about their life together post-show, she shared, "So when you look back on it, yes, part of the excitement and the happiness probably had to do with those external factors."
When Gerry from Indiana and Theresa from New Jersey publicly announced their split in April, they claimed distance was the main issue because neither of them wanted to leave their loved ones behind.
But Theresa hinted to Ben and Ashley that distance wasn't the only reason for their split.
Now that Theresa and Gerry are both single again, Theresa said she wants Gerry to find his person.
"I want him to be with his person. I want him to be with the person he should be with, and that wasn't me," Theresa noted.
"If there was someone else on the show he really wanted to be with, I wish that that could happen -- if there was any possibility that that could happen. I want him to be happy."
Theresa also said she still believes that The Golden Bachelor process can really work and cultivate healthy long-term relationships.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
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