Madison Prewett, an ex-contestant on The Bachelor, is sharing about a part of her life that she says shaped a large part of her early adulthood. In the most recent episode of her podcast, The Madi Prewett Show, the reality TV star discussed her experience battling an addiction to pornography and masturbation that began when she was a young teen and has been free from those issues for 10 years now.
Prewett, 29, said her struggles began at 13 from watching a TV show that awoke some feelings she did not expect. What started out as curiosity quickly turned into a habit that she felt was embarrassing and isolating. To her, it was a secret that she carried for years and it was a weight that seemed heavier the more time passed, especially growing up in a Christian family.
Prewett admitted on the podcast that she wasn't fully aware of what 'it' entailed. “It was just a show that stimulated something in me, and it started this cycle that I felt like I couldn't escape.”
“I felt conflicted between my personal faith and my behavior, and it created inner strength—awareness of desire and behavior and tension over a number of years,” she said. “I would try to stop, and then I would do it again. I thought something must be wrong with me,” she said.
Her Healing Process was Rooted in Faith and Community
Prewett explained that the shift came when she told both God and a group of her trusted fellow Christians about her battle. She called it a freedom, feeling as though she was no longer being weighed down by the burden alone. She felt like publicly discussing the struggle gave her the start of a healing process.
"As soon as I said the thing that I had been afraid to say for so long; I felt free," she said. "I had been living in shame, thinking I was the only one, but as soon as I brought into the light, it was like the shame was being broken."
Currently, she is free of porn and masturbation for almost one decade. Prewett credited her faith and her community for her ability to overcome the addiction. She also discussed accountability and honesty while working through personal problems.
On the same episode, her husband Grant Troutt contributed to the conversation and exposed his own justifications and struggles with sexual purity. The couple said they were one another in healing and accountability prior to their marriage in 2022.
That's when their lives changed so much. Earlier this year, Prewett and Troutt welcomed their first child, a daughter named Hosanna Rose. The couple recently moved from Texas to Nashville, where they are now raising their daughter in a faith-centered atmosphere.
Prewett indicated that one of her objectives in revealing this part of her story is to help others who may feel alone in their struggles. She recognized that porn and masturbation are the types of conversations that are not had openly, especially in faith traditions, but that they should be.
"I know I'm not the only one – I understand a lot of people struggle with this and feel like they can't talk about it," she said. "I'm hoping being honest allows someone else to feel seen and less ashamed."
Prewett first received national recognition during Season 24 of The Bachelor, where she was a finalist, and has since continued to publicly speak about her faith and self-improvement.
Source(Image / Thumbnail): people.com
