Nature is healing. Chris Randone says he’s finally feeling “happy” following his 2020 split from Krystal Nielson after nearly eight months of marriage.
The Bachelorette season 14 contestant, 33, took to Instagram on Friday, October 8, to let fans know he was doing better than he had been in a while, posting a series of images from a recent trip to Sonoma, California, for Bachelor alum Victoria Fuller’s 28th birthday. His vacation photos featured familiar Bachelor Nation faces including Spencer Robertson, Kelsey Weier, Christen Whitney and Natasha Parker.
“Posting back on Instagram because for once I’m happy in my life again 😎,” he wrote alongside the post, which is the only one currently featured in his Instagram feed.
The Bachelor in Paradise season 5 couple called it quits in February 2020 after tying the knot in June 2019, letting fans know in a joint statement that they had mutually decided to separate. “Never did we imagine this scenario, but we’ve come to a point where we both need to work on ourselves,” they stated in a Valentine’s Day release.
The Change Your Mindset, Change Your Energy, Change Your Life coauthor admitted exclusively to Us Weekly that he wasn’t completely surprised when it happened. “I would be lying if I said yes,” he told Us in August 2020. “Because there were definitely moments where there were either warning signs or there were just mixed signals.”
However, Randone was caught off guard when his followers implied that his latest Instagram post was his coming out announcement. “I forgot this is why I don’t f–k with Instagram,” the sales trainer wrote in the comment section of the October post. “Being happy doesn’t mean gay. It’s called overcoming depression and anxiety.”
He continued, “I mean, I had a divorce during a pandemic with a woman who was pregnant that I loved. Can I take time to heal? Geez, how ignorant can people be?”
Nielson, 33, filed for divorce from the Florida native in August 2020 and announced she was expecting a baby with new boyfriend Miles Bowles three months later. Randone reacted to her November 2020 pregnancy news via Instagram, writing that he felt “truly broken,” adding, “I’ll never be OK about it but I will just continue to be grateful for the years I had with that love. At least, the love I had in my heart.”
Keep scrolling to see the first photos Randone posted following his divorce.