Ben Higgins is picking up the pieces after his engagement to Lauren Bushnell didn't work out.

For starters, the Colorado-native is gearing up to release a podcast with fellow Bachelor Nation star Ashley Iaconetti, and E! News has an exclusive look at the duo's first episode. Ben addresses the surprise split, speaking for one of the first times about how he's coping with life as a bachelor once more.

"Just to be as politically correct as possible and to also be as truthful as possible, Lauren will always be one of my best friends," Ben shared. "It's [a relationship] where I learned a lot about myself; I think she learned a lot about herself. Obviously, she knows me better than anybody else that has gone through this experience, and really probably anybody else in the world. It's tough."

Higgins described the heartache as "very fresh," because in his words, "It's hard to say goodbye to somebody that you spent so much time with and it's hard to say goodbye to somebody that you really did believe was the one for you."