“Bachelor ”Alum Demi Burnett Says She Began 2-Year Celibacy Journey After Quitting Drinking

"Since I stopped drinking, I really — I went back to my old high school ways of being a prude," Burnett candidly admitted

Demi Burnett is explaining her decision to remain celibate for the last two years.

In the latest episode of the Almost Famous podcast, the Bachelor in Paradise alum, 29, told hosts Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti that it was “rich of you to assume that I’ve been on a date” since she publicly announced her autism diagnosis in February 2022.

When Higgins said there was “no way” she hadn’t been on date, she responded, “No, I have not. No, I swear the only thing that’s happening is in the past month, I’ve hung out with one guy. By hang out, I mean he comes over for a few hours and goes home.... He is also autistic and he’s also in reality TV.”

Related: 'BiP's' Demi Burnett Says She's Having 'Emotional Breakdowns' as She Talks Mental Health: 'I Know I'm Growing'

Burnett — who will mark three years of sobriety in July — went to explain that she has stayed away from physical intimacy for much of that time.

“I’ve been celibate for two years. I’m not having sex,” she admitted. “Since I stopped drinking, I really — I went back to my old high school ways of being a prude.”

“The act of it is disgusting, our bodily fluids touching each other. Have they washed their hands? Am I going to have to ask them, like, brush your teeth?” she continued. “All of these things that I’m just like, it’s not worth it to me. Whereas when I was younger, I didn’t really care about all that stuff. Now that I’m not, I am very weird about all of that, and I can get turned off so easily because of the smell.”

Related: 'BIP' 's Demi Burnett Says Being 'Criticized' for Her Sexuality 'Hurts': 'There's Nothing I Can Do'

Burnett first appeared on Colton Underwood’s season of The Bachelor in 2019. She went on to star on Bachelor in Paradise, eventually becoming one half of the Bachelor franchise's first same-sex couple after getting engaged to then-girlfriend Kristian Haggerty. The pair called it quits in October 2019, and Burnett dated Slater Davis after that until they split in June 2020.

The reality star also gave an update on her sobriety, sharing, ““It’s been great. I would say the best thing is ... not feeling sick. Not feeling like you’re dying.”

She added, “That was the worst part, for sure. I always felt like I was dying and the anxiety. Don’t get me wrong, I still have anxiety but it’s not about dying from drinking.”

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In June 2022, Burnett shared a candid message on X (formerly known as Twitter) about her sobriety journey.

"I haven't had a sip of alcohol in 11 months," she wrote at the time. “I used to be drunk all day every day. I used to drink almost a bottle of Tito’s a day. I honestly never thought I could do this. I never thought I would be able to not drink. This is wild man.”

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