Clare Crawley Says Her Breast Implants “Were 1000% Not Worth It”

It’s been more than a year since Clare Crawley got her breast implants removed, but fans still have questions about her experience. When the former Bachelorette star opened up her Instagram DMs for a “long flight AMA” on Oct. 22, the topic of her implants was a popular one. Followers wondered about her views now, her advice, and the health problems that prompted her to get explant surgery in July 2021.

The first question Crawley answered on the subject was from someone who wanted to know if she regretted getting breast implants or wished “other women wouldn’t.” The reality TV star had a philosophical response about looking back: “I don’t like to say I regret anything in life,” she wrote in an Instagram story. “But I lost so many good years fighting the sickness/toxicity that they caused me.”

She continued by noting that for her personally, “they were 1000% not worth it.” As for whether or not others should avoid them, Crawley opted not to weigh, saying, “I would never tell anyone else what to do.” She did, however, caution people to “just be informed of what they could cause” and know “there is a reason they have a black box warning!”

In another story, Crawley responded to a follower who was curious about those dangers she warned of — specifically, the first symptoms of breast implant illness (BII) she experienced. And there was a whole list: dark circles, a gray tint to the whites of her eyes, rashes around her eyes and “all over” her body, “no energy,” and intolerance to cold and hot weather. She opted to include a photo of her during this time, pointing out the issues with her eyes.

The rashes were a symptom the ex Bachelorette highlighted when she first opened about the situation in a July 3 Instagram post. Her video revealed that she’d been sick for a long time, trying to get answers, before doctors finally realized the problem was her implants. She decided to get explant surgery, and by July 31, she’d had the procedure and was “on the road to healing.”

About a week post-op, Crawley also took questions during a Q&A in her Instagram stories. She reassured fans that she was feeling like herself again and was already feeling better. “The biggest thing I noticed after surgery probably was my rashes being instantly gone,” she said.

Continuing to open up to her fans about dealing with BII has been the Bachelorette vet’s way of helping others. In her July 3 post, she wrote that she was sharing “in hopes that it might help others going through something similar feel not so alone.” She added, “I know how being your own health advocate is hard sometimes, and can feel like an uphill battle.”