Plot twist! Bettina Buchanan revealed why she didn’t perform her best on MTV’s The Challenge season 37 — she was pregnant.

Following her elimination on The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies during the Wednesday, October 27 episode, the 25-year-old rookie took to Instagram to tell fans that she knew something wasn’t right while filming the reality show.

“I have worked abroad on various projects for about six years now, but one of the last times was a little different,” the Paradise Hotel Sweden alum wrote on Sunday, October 31. “I was much more sensitive than I ever used to be.”

She continued, “I am an elite athlete and a trained PT and am usually quite strong — but despite the fact that I trained, I became weaker and slower, and gained weight, with each passing week.”

Something felt off, which is why Buchanan said she didn’t push herself in the lair during her final episode.  “Call me crazy, but I’m always sure if I have to go home all of a sudden it’s for a reason,” the Celebrity Ex on the Beach Sweden alum wrote.

It was until the Sweden native got home that she learned she was 15-weeks pregnant, which was a surprise. Knowing she was not ready to become a mother at this time, “it was obvious to have an abortion,” Buchanan wrote.

The reality star went on to say that while the procedure is “a human right” in Sweden, “I know that it is absolutely not legal everywhere. I also know that many do not dare to have an abortion due to patriarchy,” she continued. “But I want you to know it is OK to have an abortion.”

Buchanan ended her post, which was written in both English and Swedish, by showing support for those who choose to not have a child. “All of us who actually dare [to have an abortion], need to talk about this to push the boundaries,” she said.

Buchanan wasn’t the first Challenge contestant to compete while pregnant. Six others including Gladys Sanabria, Robin Hibbard, Faith Stowers and Melissa Reeves also found out they were carrying a child during their time on the show.

Reeves, 29, quit during The Challenge season 35 finale last year after learning she was four months pregnant. “It was at the top of that mountain in Austria when I first realized I may be pregnant,” the Brit wrote via Instagram in July 2020. Her daughter, Vienna Simpson Reeves, was born in May of that same year and was named after the filming location.

Earlier this year, Challenge season 36 alum Natalie Anderson left the show because she was pregnant. The 35-year-old later revealed that she later suffered a miscarriage, which was a “really difficult” experience, she exclusively told Us Weekly in January.

“I had just kind of come to peace with leaving the game and saying goodbye to the competition of the challenge, which I love, came back home and changed my mindset into this new journey,” Anderson told Us. “And that was then taken away from me. It was hard for me.”

The Challenge: Spies, Lies & Allies airs on MTV Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.

This story originally appeared on: US Magazine - Author:Shannon Carlin