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Jonathan Towns<\/strong><\/a> became one of the more controversial contestants on The Amazing Race<\/strong><\/a><\/em> in recent memory and he\u2019s opening up about how being on the show changed his life.<\/p>\n Fans of the CBS reality competition series criticized Jonathan<\/strong> for the way he treated his wife Ana <\/strong>on the show, exhibiting distressing behavior towards her and even calling her a \u201cterrible partner\u201d at one point.<\/p>\n Jonathan <\/strong>recently revealed that he was diagnosed with autism after finishing the race.<\/p>\n Keep reading to find out more\u2026<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen I look back at it, what I see, from what I know now, it\u2019s almost as if you don\u2019t know what\u2019s happening in your head. For a neurotypical person, you have a good sense of the emotions that are coming through your mind at any given time. But for me, it\u2019s almost impossible to make sense of the emotions, because they\u2019re just so powerful in that moment. And so oftentimes I would just unleash that emotion on her,\u201d Jonathan <\/strong>told Parade<\/a>. \u201cAnd that was obviously wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n He continued, \u201cIt\u2019s so impossible to describe to someone that doesn\u2019t live this experience. And that\u2019s what I think has been so hard for people that did see it. You say, \u2018Okay, he has autism, but what does that have to do with anything?\u2019 And I think an important distinction is that I was undiagnosed. And I had no tools. I didn\u2019t know what was happening with me. And I wish I could just put people in my shoes in that moment, so they can understand just how difficult it is to be in that moment. It\u2019s just very hard to do.\u201d<\/p>\n Ana <\/strong>opened up about what it has been like adapting to the discovery.<\/p>\n \u201cIt took me so long, even going through therapy and even just doing tons of research and reading, just for me to fully understand. I mean, I still don\u2019t fully understand. And there\u2019s so much more communication now because he\u2019s able to use his words. He has a method,\u201d she said. \u201cBut now that I am learning, again, it\u2019s just like the fog was lifted. And so many things made sense. Even conflicts that we\u2019ve had in the past. Even when we separated, it was always misunderstandings, miscommunications.\u201d<\/p>\n Jonathan <\/strong>talked about what led to the diagnosis. When they got home from filming in June 2024, Ana <\/strong>\u201cbought me Nonviolent Communication<\/em> and said, \u2018Here, you need to read this.\u2019 And that\u2019s how it started. It was very interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHis family has always had a suspicion. It was just never addressed. They never bothered,\u201d Ana <\/strong>said. Jonathan <\/strong>added, \u201cWe almost had it as an inside joke that I was autistic. So I never took that seriously, because that\u2019s just my family\u2019s sense of humor. So I think at this point we start to say, \u2018Maybe there\u2019s something to this.\u2019 And so I go online, and I do some reading. And I take this test. It\u2019s called The AQ, and that stands for \u2018autism quotient.\u2019 And I take the test. It tells me, \u2018Okay, you have trade sit aligned with autism.\u2019 And so I\u2019m like, \u2018Okay, that\u2019s weird. Let me go ahead and get a doctor to confirm this.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n Jonathan <\/strong>and Ana <\/strong>said it was difficult to find a doctor who would diagnose him as an adult. <\/p>\n Read the full interview on Parade.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n The winners of the current season have revealed what was edited in the finale <\/a>and how things actually happened in real life. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n