Josh Seiter Courtesy of Josh Seiter/Instagram
Josh Seiter opened up about the hate she has received since coming out as transgender.
“I’ve had death threats, people telling me they’re going to hang me, they can’t wait to see me so they can kill me,” Seiter, 37, claimed in an interview with the Daily Mail on Monday, August 12. “These are all messages I have in my [direct message inbox].”
Seiter, who appeared on Kaitlyn Bristowe’s season of The Bachelorette in 2015, added that she’s used to people voicing their “horrible” opinions at her over the years.
“I don’t take life advice from people screaming at me on social media. That’s just never how I’ve lived my life,” she told the outlet. “When I was a male stripper, people were saying nasty things about me. When I did OnlyFans, people said nasty things about me.”
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The one thing that did surprise Seiter was the alleged lack of a warm welcome she’s received from the LGBTQIA+ community.
“Ironically, I’ve actually found that the far left and the LGBTQ community have been some of the most vitriolic and mean towards me throughout all of this,” she claimed. “So that’s a very tough issue for me because I haven’t been met with acceptance, tolerance and open arms like the left loves to preach about.”
Seiter came out as transgender in May in an emotional Instagram post.
“I have struggled with my gender identity — and resulting feelings of guilt and shame — for as long as I can remember. I spent the last three decades taking great pains to keep this side private,” Seiter wrote in a statement at the time. “I felt I had no choice, given my upbringing in a strictly religious, conservative family. As I’ve gotten older, I have tried my hardest to project the expected image of a strong, masculine son and brother.”
The former reality star explained that she no longer wanted to “hide” her authentic self to prevent the “mental turmoil” she faced. Seiter shared that she was also in the process of transitioning and asked that her followers “accept” her now as they once did.
In August 2023, Seiter had her Instagram hacked and the account falsely claimed that she died. Days later, the post was taken down and Seiter released a video stating she was alive.
“Hey guys as you can see, I am alive and well. My account was hacked for the last 24 hours. I had been trying desperately to get into it,” she said in an August 2023 Instagram clip. “Somebody was playing a cruel joke and mocking my mental illness and the struggles I’ve gone through with depression and suicide attempts. I am sorry for the pain they caused when they made that post.”
Following the death hoax, Seiter checked into a mental health facility after she claimed to receive harassing messages.
“I wish I was stronger but I can’t take any more and am logging off of social media for good and am checking myself into a wellness facility now to try to get some kind of handle on my mental health,” she said via Instagram in September 2023. “I am losing my phone in the next hour. I love you all. To the people sending me death threats, you win.”
