The Bachelor’s Joey Graziadei slams Season 28’s “trauma dumping” critique

Joey Graziadei of The Bachelor Season 28 defended contestants after critics said they were sharing too much of their baggage with him.

Joey Graziadei of The Bachelor Season 28 has taken the front-row seat to 32 women, their baggage, and their hearts.

Though it’s imperative to know everything you can about the person you’re about to be engaged to, critics of the show are calling out the women for “trauma dumping” their personal lives onto Joey.

Joey has since reacted to the criticism, saying it’s something he welcomed with “open arms.”

Joey Graziadei says the women “learned a lot” about him and likewise 

As the finale of The Bachelor Season 28 approaches, the women have been more open about their personal lives, especially since Joey will be visiting only four of their hometowns in next week’s episode.

Fan-favorite Daisy Kent was upfront early on about her disability, while former contestant Lexi Young shared her fertility concerns before self-eliminating.

Contestant Kelsey Anderson has also been emotionally honest about her life after her mom died six years ago. And before former contestant Jess Edwards was eliminated, she made sure Joey knew about her previous relationship that left her broken.

However, after hearing those one-on-one conversations, critics of the show have called the women out for “trauma dumping.”

Joey has since responded in an interview with Bustle, saying he more than understands that “time is of the essence” and that the women don’t always know how much time they’ll get with him, so their intimate conversations may seem like a lot to viewers.

He continued, “The beautiful thing about those one-on-ones is that it’s an uninterrupted space where you have the floor, and you can share things that are important for the person you might be with to get to know who you are.”

Though critics think otherwise, Joey said, “It’s more that they’re sharing things that make them who they are.”

The titular Bachelor then said that although production may not have focused on him doing so, he also shared his personal feelings and fears with multiple women, “They learned a lot about me through this whole process.”

He continued, “And that’s how it should be — both people feeling open to sharing intimate things about them to see if there’s a real connection you can build off of.”

Though Joey still has a few episodes before the final rose ceremony, fans can tune into ABC every Monday at 8:00 PM EST to see what happens next on The Bachelor Season 28.