Sometimes it can be hard to remember that before reality stars were on TV, they were just regular people. After becoming celebrities overnight, the sudden public attention can be overwhelming—and sometimes really nasty. This can have real-life, long-term consequences. One Australian reality star, Nicole Prince, even sued the reality TV show she was on (and won!) because of the way she was portrayed and how the subsequent bullying harmed her life.
So, is it the show’s responsibility to prepare contestants for life after reality TV? They don’t have any legal obligation to offer any mental health resources but maybe they should.
One program that has mental health embedded in its DNA is Married at First Sight. On the show, a panel of experts—Pastor Cal, marriage coach and relationship expert; Dr. Pepper Schwartz, professor of sociology; and Dr. Viviana Coles, sex and relationship therapist—pair two strangers to be married without ever having met or even so much as seen a picture of their future spouse. The couple lives together for eight weeks, and at the end of that period, they must decide whether to stay together or get a divorce.
Image: ABC.
Before they are even cast, every contestant is vetted by the experts who appear on the show, as well as an independent team of mental health professionals. The show airs participants’ discussions with the experts, who provide counseling and advice throughout the process. And after the show airs, contestants are offered therapy, paid for by Kinetic, the production company.
“If we feel that somebody is, in fact, not handling this well, we urge them to get this care. We can’t make them do that, you know. It’s an individual choice, but it’s free and available to them,” Dr. Pepper tells StyleCaster over the phone. “Like Kate [Sisk] from season 9. She said listen, ‘I need more counselling. I need more therapy, and I can’t afford it.’ And sure enough, I think we gave her 6 to 12 more [sessions]…we are never going to deny that to them because the stakes are just so high.”
Fans of Married at First Sight may remember Kate because of how terribly her marriage to Luke played out. Luke got a lot of attention after the show for his cruelty and manipulation toward Kate, and Dr. Pepper says she spent hours with the couple to try to get Kate to leave and see that the relationship was toxic.
Image: Lifetime.
Another contestant on Married at First Sight who received a lot of attention was Iris Caldwell, from season 10, mostly for her virginity. Iris tells StyleCaster that, before the show, even some of her closest friends didn’t know she was a virgin—now millions of viewers do. She says she didn’t expect the amount of negativity she received, but her faith and mental health resources helped her get through it. “When it comes to the counselor that was off-site, she actually watched the episodes with me, so that was kind of great,” Iris says. “It was a really good representation of truly being hand-held throughout.”
“If they’re profiting off the lives of contestants, they owe it to take care of them.”
But these mental health policies are not ubiquitous, and they appear to be somewhat unusual for the reality TV industry. Ashley Spivey, a former contestant on The Bachelor, has been critical of the franchise on her podcast, “He Said, She Said.” While she’s not afraid to call out the show or ABC, she does point out that producers on the show really do care about contestants’ well-being. She also argues that, perhaps if the show introduced some mental health policy, viewers wouldn’t have such a negative image of production.
“I think a lot of harm really is happening in terms of social media in the period where [contestants] get off the show and the things they have to read on social media when there is really nothing they can do,” Spivey tells StyleCaster. “And then during the show, the abuse that the contestants are having to endure through that period is insane, and I almost wish that the studio would do more to prepare these people even before they get on.”
Image: Lifetime.
Another factor Bachelor Nation stars have to deal with is the expectations fans have for them once the season is over. “There’s such pressure after the show, with these dating shows, to make relationships work—even if it’s with someone who isn’t on the show,” Spivey says.
Craig Robinson, another Bachelor alum, recently opened up about his mental health and addiction. In an interview with StyleCaster, he brings up the fact that more than one former reality star has died by suicide in the past, including Robinson’s friend and former Bachelor star, Gia Allemand, in 2013.
Whether it’s through editing or production traps, there’s very little to protect contestants from potential repercussions.
“One of the things that kind of touches me personally has been the aspect of suicide, and I know with reality shows, looking back at the history of it, there’s been a number of them,” he says. Though he doesn’t know if there is necessarily a direct correlation between reality TV and suicide, Craig believes that shows can definitely do more for their contestants’ mental well-being. “I think just some follow up check-ups would be in everyone’s best interest,” Craig says, calling the idea an “Extra layer of protection.”
Image: ABC/Rick Rowell.
Jo Hemmings a U.K.-based behavioral psychologist who advises reality show producers during the casting process, tells StyleCaster that, in the U.K., producers often warn contestants of the negativity they may receive from social media. Hemmings also points out that there are other potential downsides to appearing on a reality show as well. Personal relationships, for example, may suffer. “There’s a lot of set-ups on some shows to bring out…temptation. Let’s put it like that,” Hemmings says. “And also when you come out having been through that experience, sometimes it does change people.”
But whether it’s through editing or production traps, there is very little to protect contestants from potential repercussions they might not have expected. “You are basically signing over your being to the production company or the channel,” Hemmings says.
Reality shows are out to entertain, first and foremost, so it makes sense that that is their priority. But if they’re profiting off the lives of contestants who are, in many cases, unprepared for the result, they owe it to them to take care of them.
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