Former 'Bachelorette' Desiree Hartsock said she received 5,000 tweets calling her an idiot after she dumped Juan Pablo

• Desiree Hartsock saw 5,000 tweets calling her an idiot after she dumped Juan Pablo Galavis.
• Galavis went on to become one of the biggest villains in "Bachelor" history.
• Hartsock told Insider she felt "a little bit" validated after her ex's season.

When Desiree Hartsock dumped Juan Pablo Galavis on her season of "The Bachelorette," fans were outraged.

How could she let go of the single dad with a professional soccer career and a very sexy accent?

But well-versed "Bachelor" fans know how the rest of the story goes. Galavis was given his own season, only to become one of the biggest villains in the franchise's 20-year history.

Hartsock told Insider that she felt "a little bit" validated during Galavis' season after receiving so much hate from Bachelor Nation, which she discusses in her new book "Road to Roses."

"It was just so ironic to me," she said. "It was probably 5,000 tweets, and they either said 'you're dumb' or 'you're an idiot.' Can you imagine just page after page of 'you're an idiot, you're an idiot, you're an idiot?'"

Hartsock was shocked at the amount of hate she got after Galavis' elimination

In "Road to Roses," Hartsock wrote she was "definitely attracted" to Galavis on her season but eventually realized the two of them didn't have "much to build on."

Hartsock described the reaction to her dumping Galavis as her first taste of "just how intense" Bachelor Nation could be.

She wrote in her book that she "thought it was clear" the two weren't a fit and was surprised when "the internet went wild" after the break-up aired. She recalled getting "thousands of notifications" on her phone from upset fans who called her "stupid and awful" for eliminating Galavis.

"It's hard to explain what it's like to experience such a tide of rage," she wrote. "I was simultaneously shocked and bewildered. From the vitriolic reactions, you'd think I murdered Juan Pablo and his whole family, not simply eliminated him from a dating show."

Hartsock told Insider she was even more surprised by the uproar because Galavis had been given far less airtime than many of her suitors.

"This guy has been on for like four episodes," she said. "I was just blown away because he hadn't even been shown much."

Galavis became the next 'Bachelor,' and his fandom didn't last long after that

Galavis first made headlines during his season after saying he didn't think the franchise should have a gay lead.

"I don't think it is a good example for kids to watch that on TV," he said.

ABC and "Bachelor" producers issued a statement calling Galavis' comments "careless, thoughtless, and insensitive," and he apologized.

But that was just the beginning. Galavis soon earned a reputation for patronizing his contestants, with his repeated "it's okay" proclamations becoming the season's catchphrase.

"I want to die if I have to hear 'it's okay' one more time," contestant and future "Bachelorette" Andi Dorfman told Galavis before eliminating herself after their Fantasy Suite date.

Galavis also had a fiery breakup with fellow future "Bachelorette" star Clare Crawley, who told him during the final rose ceremony that she would "never want my children having a father like you."

Hartsock found Galavis' season 'really surprising'

"When everyone was petitioning for him to be the Bachelor I was for that, because me and Chris both really liked him," Hartsock said, referring to her husband Chris Siegfried, who she picked during her season's finale.

"So it was actually really surprising to see on his season just how... interesting he was," she added with a laugh.

"So it wasn't validating because we did like the guy, but [it was] a little bit, just to be like, so now what are you going to say about me being an idiot?"