Hannah Brown left The Bachelorette process a changed woman, and despite the heartache and headlines, she said it was all worth it.
"Being The Bachelorette did not end the way I thought it was going to be. I could not have expected my ending in a million years, but I grew so much. I think the girl that started and the girl that finished the After the Final Rose is a totally different woman and that's worth everything—even the heartbreak through it. So, when I think of it in the large scheme of things, I would still do it," Hannah told E! News after she was announced as part of the Dancing With the Stars season 28 cast.
Hannah said she thinks joining DWTS alongside the likes of James Van Der Beek, Lamar Odom and Christie Brinkley is the perfect way to begin again, something she's been looking forward to doing since moving to Los Angeles and opening up about her struggles.
"I want a fresh start, something I can go all in with emotionally, physically and spiritually" and Hannah told the Good Morning America hosts that she thinks DWTS can do that for her.
The reality star plans to bring her trademark honesty to the dance floor too. In a recent Instagram post, Hannah admitted she had been "struggling" with just how different her life has become over the last year.
"I've been in love with multiple people, I got engaged, I broke off an engagement, and I shared it all with millions of people. My faith has been questioned by thousands who don't know my heart, and my transparency with my decisions has labeled me promiscuous. Simultaneously, I've become a role model for young women and started bigger conversations around faith, and sex," she wrote.
She said she has no regrets opening up about any of that.
"No, I don't think the struggle is over because I'm a human being and we all struggle. We all have different struggles. Mine's just been for everyone to see and everybody wants to know how I'm doing, if I'm happy or I'm not," she explained.
Hannah noted her mixture of emotions is what makes her a normal person.
"I want to continue being as real and honest and authentic as I was on The Bachelorette because that's how people are invested in who I am and my journey, and I'm going to continue do that. It doesn't mean I'm lying on the floor crying, it just means that I'm real," she said.
Click play on the video above to hear more from Hannah.
Dancing With the Stars season 28 premieres Monday, Sept. 16 at 8 p.m. on ABC.