Former Bachelor In Paradise winner Riley Christian is opening up about how hard his breakup with Maurissa Gunn has been, and how grateful he is for all of those who stood by him. Maurissa, a 25-year-old patient care coordinator from Atlanta, and Riley, a 32-year-old attorney from New York, first met on BIP season 7. While Maurissa had previously been getting to know someone else on the island, as soon as Riley walked in everything changed. The two quickly became Bachelor Nation favorites and delighted everyone when they got engaged on the last episode. Making Bachelor history as the first black couple ever to get engaged on the franchise.

Things seemed good for the couple, and in their interviews afterward, Riley and Maurissa talked openly about their wedding plans, the idea of having children sooner rather than later, and even Maurissa moving to NYC to be with him. Their social media accounts, which had been previously inactive due to being on the show, were now filled with pictures of the happy couple. Everything seemed to be going well, but in early January, after Maurissa had finally moved to New York, fans started to speculate something might be wrong. Maurissa had deleted every picture with Riley off her Instagram, and both parties were tweeting rather suspicious things. Later that month the couple confirmed in a joint statement that they had broken up. While Maurissa took a month-long absence from social media, Riley had remained fairly consistent with his postings. His captions were filled with vague motivational quotes, nothing too specific

Related: BIP: Maurissa Gunn & Riley Christian Officially Announce Breakup

Now Riley is finally opening up in his latest Instagram post. The post, which shows Riley with a big smile wearing a lovely suit, features a rather lengthy caption that begins by saying, "It takes a while for me to heal, but I thank you all for your patience." He continues on, "This has been one of the most difficult times of my life, but as with everything I always do my best to move forward with hopeful and positive spirits. But you see, I was always taught by my pops that “we bend but don’t break.” But some very good people showed me otherwise". In a rather candid moment, Riley went on to thank his friend Dijah, who would spend long nights on the phone with Riley, listening to him "wail".

Riley continued by thanking his mother who, "I’ve spent more time with in the past month than I have in the past 5 years combined". He ended her section by promising to visit home more. About Riley's father, he went on to say, "To my pops, who I haven’t seen in 11 years, if you could see me today I think you’d be proud." Riley ended his caption by thanking Bachelor Nation for their love and support, and an optimistic outlook on the future. Of course, his personal post was met with lots of love in the comments, including his friend Dijah who wrote, "Will always always always be here for you. That’s what besties are for."

Healing from a breakup, especially such a public one, is never easy. Season 7 of Bachelor In Paradise was a huge success in large part due to Maurissa and Riley's love story. They made Bachelor history, and though this breakup is a tough thing for fans to watch. The love and respect in which Maurissa and Riley have showcased hasn't been. Riley seems to be healing at his own pace, just as he ends his post, "Now let’s have some fun…and be great all 2022."

Next: BIP: Maurissa Gunn 'Taking Time To Heal At My Own Pace' After Breakup

Source: Riley Christian/Instagram