Why Married At First Sight's Alyssa Is Rescuing Dogs, Not Men - Exclusive

From a stilted wedding day to a hellish honeymoon, Season 14 of "Married at First Sight" hasn't exactly been much of a happily ever after for Alyssa Ellman. The 30-year-old animal lover has seemingly courted criticism from just about everyone in recent weeks concerning her lack of interest in her groom Chris Collette, a 35-year-old real estate agent with whom she feels incompatible. However, Alyssa is trying to act according to her heart's wishes. 

In an exclusive interview with Nicki Swift, the humanitarian explained that when it comes to relationships, she was "proceeding with caution," and understandably so. Having experienced a heartbreaking end to her last relationship, she knew how to traverse the tough terrain of love. "I am over my last heartbreak and how it ended, and I'm ready to start a new chapter in my life," she reasoned. But did she also have her walls up to Chris, as a result? 

"I think no matter what happens in your life, everyone has some sort of walls up, no one wants to get hurt, especially when that has happened before," she explained. When she was initially introduced on the show, Alyssa was presented as a woman with a proud penchant for animal rescue. In having such a nurturing personality, she also appeared to be vulnerable for taking on too much in a partnership. Was the Boston-based participant nervous that she could have been matched with a man who similarly needed to be "rescued"? 

Alyssa Ellman wasn't prepared to habituate a new man to fit her life or standards. For "Married at First Sight," she wanted someone who was already house-broken for the type of relationship she craved. So naturally, she was nervous about her potential new beau. "Considering my tagline is 'looking for her forever home,' I was very worried with my big heart and huge passion for rescuing animals that they could pair me with someone who needed to be rescued," she shared. 

Sadly, Alyssa and Chris Collette have failed to find anything resembling a forever home on "Married at First Sight." And while she may be experiencing backlash for not even wanting to try a relationship with her reality TV groom — or to talk about it in front of the cameras — she's nonetheless stayed true to herself. As Alyssa tells it, there may have been a newfound element of self-preservation and self-care to her approach. "I do have such a big heart and sometimes it puts me in compromising positions. I always put others before myself," she told Nicki Swift. "At this point in my life, I'm trying to look out for myself before anyone else." Even her harshest critics have to understand that point of view. 

Find out what happens next in Alyssa's tumultuous love story with Chris on "Married at First Sight" Wednesdays on Lifetime.