'Mama June' star June Shannon opens up on heartbreaking loss
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The face of 'Mama June: Family Crisis', June Shannon, better known as Mama June, seems to be struggling more than she lets on. The 45-year-old TLC star shared a series of heartbreaking posts on her Instagram stories on Tuesday, October 22, hinting at her ongoing struggles with mental health. In one post, she expressed feeling trapped in a 'Groundhog Day' moment every day for the past 11 months. It appears June is still grappling with the loss of her eldest daughter, Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell, who died on December 9, 2023, after battling adrenal cancer.
Anna died surrounded by family and friends, but the tragedy hit June, a mother of four, the hardest. One of her Instagram stories featured a song by Lydia Laird, with lyrics about how life feels different after losing someone special, an emotion that seems to mirror June’s current struggles. In another post, June shared a reel expressing that she doesn’t feel like herself these days, captioning it with, “This has been me for the past year.” Moreover, she hinted that, despite life throwing curveballs, she’s doing her best to push through.
'Mama June' star June Shannon breaks down, grieving that she’ll never hold Anna Cardwell again
Mama June’s battle with Anna’s loss has not been easy. Earlier this year, she revealed that she didn’t want to confront her grief after Anna’s death. In an episode of 'Mama June: Family Crisis', the reality star struggled upon receiving Anna's remains. She admitted to waking up in the middle of the night, convinced she could hear her daughter calling her name.
"I just lay there thinking she's gonna ask for medicine or she's gonna do this, or she's gonna do that, but we never get to see her again," she tearfully shared, according to Entertainment Tonight. June confessed that the hardest part is accepting she’ll never be able to touch her daughter again. Her husband, Justin Stroud, urged her to express her emotions, but June insisted on putting on a brave face for the sake of raising their 11-year-old child.
Struggles continue in 'Mama June' star June Shannon's marriage with Justin Stroud
While June continues to struggle with the grief of Anna's death, her emotional challenges seem to extend beyond her loss. Her marriage to Justin Stroud has also been facing difficulties. The couple, who met during June’s recovery from drug addiction, were married in a courthouse ceremony on March 23, 2022, just six months into their relationship.
Although June claims that Justin is different from her past partners, their relationship seems unstable. A clear sign of this came when June proposed renewing their vows, but Justin viewed it as a shallow attempt to fix their marriage without tackling the deeper issues they were facing. Frustrated, he even called the ceremony embarrassing. Justin admitted he sometimes questions whether June truly meant her vows and wonders if she’ll act on them rather than just say the words.
'Mama June' star June Shannon faces challenges in her weight loss journey
Apart from her emotional struggles, June is also battling to lose weight. The TLC star began her weight loss journey in 2017 but gained weight during her eldest daughter Anna's cancer battle. However, after revamping her diet and committing to the gym, she managed to go from 280 to 245.4 pounds.
June is now on weight loss medication. She was initially on Semaglutide, which is like Ozempic, and was then prescribed Triglycerides to lose weight while she also hit the gym. Currently, she has dropped enough weight to reach 195 pounds.
