Elizabeth Corrigan's ADHD may have been used against her by Shanae Ankney on the recent episode of The Bachelor, but franchise alum Hannah Brown is voicing her support for those battling a mental illness. Season 26 is only in its second week, yet the fight for Clayton Echard's heart is already intensifying as jealously, secret hometown flings and more begin to emerge. While these are expected aspects of the show, weaponizing somebody's mental health struggle is not. Now, Hannah and Bachelor Nation as a whole are standing up for Elizabeth and sharing their own journeys of dealing with ADHD on a daily basis.
The tension between the two women seemingly started out of nowhere when Shanae revealed to Clayton that she sees Elizabeth as a "red flag." According to Shanae, Elizabeth snubbed her at the pool earlier in the day. Once Clayton informed Elizabeth of the conversation, she pulled Shanae aside to explain the situation. "It's really hard for me to have multiple auditory inputs because I can't process the information," said Elizabeth. "I have ADHD. I've had it really bad since I was a kid. Like, I was probably just really trying to concentrate on what Ency [Abedin] was trying to say to me, and maybe you had said something in the middle of her saying something or me saying something and I just, I can't, like, hear it." However, Shanae refused to accept the explanation and went on to inform the other contestants about Elizabeth's diagnosis.
On the heels of the episode, Hannah, who starred on The Bachelorette season 15 and appeared on Colton Underwood's season of The Bachelor, stressed that Elizabeth's description of what happened is a common occurrence among those with ADHD. Hannah, who suffers from ADHD herself, and her boyfriend Adam Woolard can relate. On her Instagram Story, Hannah said, "Elizabeth was in a conversation with somebody, but Shanae didn't feel like she was being listened to. We [Adam and I] had this conversation because if I'm in a room of people and I'm talking to somebody, if he comes in, I will not acknowledge because I have to be hyper-focused on the one person. We've had to talk about it because sometimes, he can feel unacknowledged. Anybody can feel like, 'Oh, she's not paying attention.' But it's the ADHD and it's a real thing."
In addition to Hannah, fans and fellow contestants applauded Elizabeth for bringing ADHD into the public spotlight. Elizabeth reshared a slew of kind messages on her Instagram Story. "From one gal with ADHD to another, our differences make us stronger and all the more captivating," said Tessa Tookes, who is also vying for Clayton's heart. "Mental health is not a joke or something to be weaponized." Several viewers called out Shanae for her actions. One said, "The fact that someone is being shamed for neurodivergence is disgusting. Thank you @ecorrigan for handling this so gracefully and representing neurodivergence on a huge platform like this."
While apology statements following occurrences like this are typically the norm, Shanae has only used her social media in recent days to fangirl over NFL star Tom Brady. Fans of The Bachelor can't wait to see what happens between Elizabeth and Shanae on the next new episode, which airs in two weeks, and whether or not Clayton is smart enough to see the truth of the situation. With Clayton already under much scrutiny by viewers, this decision could officially make or break their opinions of him for good.
The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.
Source: Hannah Brown/Instagram, Elizabeth Corrigan/Instagram