"She got into her own head": Jesse Palmer reacts to Lauren's exit from The Bachelor season 28

The Bachelor host Jesse Palmer feels sorry for contestant Lauren, who self-eliminated herself in the second episode of season 28, released on Monday, January 29. The Philadephia native, the older sister of fellow cast member Allison, made the shocking announcement after having to wait the entire night to speak with Joey Graziadei, the leading man of the series this time.

Lauren admitted to Joey that she was in a “bad mood” caused by the delay just moments before calling it quits for the show. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Jesse Palmer empathized with Lauren, suggesting it would have been difficult for the female suitor to process all her emotions. He said:

“I really felt for Lauren, I can’t imagine what it must have been like trying to process all of those emotions. I think she got into her own head a bit and simply wasn’t able to turn the page.”

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Why did Lauren leave The Bachelor season 28?

Earlier in episode 2, viewers saw Lauren joining Joey and seven other women dressed in wedding gowns at a fake wedding reception. After the group date, Lauren spoke at length about the distressing emotions the fake wedding reception brought her. She opened up to Joey about the passing of her father.

Lauren confessed celebrating a fake wedding reminded her that her father wouldn’t be around for the real one. After the cocktail, she had been waiting for her time with Joey, planning to recreate the wedding date. However, the Philadelphia native ran out of patience before her turn arrived and decided to leave The Bachelor.

In a confessional, Lauren explained:

“It’s just a lot of girls that want to get time with him, and I want to get mine in. And the anticipation of waiting around to do that kind of gets to you.”

When she finally met Joey, Lauren complained about not getting more private time with him and said in anger:

“I don’t even want to talk to you now because now I’m just in a bad mood to do it.”

Joey explained he felt “terrible” about having to make her wait:

“I wish I could say or do something but I can tell you’ve gotten to a point where you’re over it.”

At one point, Lauren, who was bubbling with anger, stated:

“If my dad were still here, he would’ve told me not to go on this show.”

In an anti-climactic manner, she also smashed an entire cake to the ground before departing. Lauren’s sister, Allison, swelled up in tears in front of the camera, learning about her exit.

After she departed from The Bachelor, Lauren wrote on Instagram:

"Well that’s a wrap! I’m truly grateful to have had this opportunity and met all these wonderful people. In hindsight, I could’ve handled things better but I’m human. Please respect my privacy at this time as I will be testing out all red velvet cakes in Philly until further notice. Wishing joey the best of luck in his journey….Now everyone go support my bestie."

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Elsewhere in episode 2, stakes were high as the ladies played a game of musical chairs to get the first dance with Joey. The leading man went on his first one-on-one date with contestant Daisy on a helicopter. Suitor Maria raised eyebrows with her scintillating wardrobe change and her clash with fellow contestant Madina about age.

The next episode of The Bachelor season 28 will be released on Monday, February 5, on ABC. Interested viewers can stream all the show's new episodes the next day on Hulu. In addition to this, The Bachelor season 28 is also available on multiple streaming services, including DirectTV Stream, YouTube TB, fuboTV, and Sling TV.