‘Queen of mommy bloggers’ Heather Armstrong – known as Dooce – dies at 48 after describing battles with sobriety and suicidal depression
- Heather B. Armstrong, 48, was among the first wave of successful bloggers
- She wrote two parenting books and a third about her battle with depression
‘Queen of the mommy bloggers’ Heather B. Armstrong – known to her followers as Dooce – has passed away at the age of 48.
Armstrong, who lived in Salt Lake City, made waves on the Internet in the early 2000s and became a pioneering blogger, writing candidly about her struggles with motherhood, depression and alcoholism.
Her death was announced today on her Instagram page.
“Heather Brooke Hamilton, aka Heather B. Armstrong, aka Dooce, aka the love of my life. July 19, 1975 – May 9, 2023. “It takes an ocean not to break.”
“Keep your loved ones close and love everyone else,” the message read.
No other details were given.
‘Queen of the mommy bloggers’ Heather B. Armstrong – known to her followers as Dooce – has passed away at the age of 48
Armstrong’s passing was announced today on her Instagram page
Her former husband, Jon Armstrong, also confirmed her death online.
Armstrong was one of the first “mom bloggers,” chronicling her struggles with depression and parenting since 2001.
She took part in drastic experiments to try and cure her depression, signed up to be rendered brain dead 10 times, and then wrote about it in the 2020 book: The Valedictorian of Death.
Her previous books include Dear Daughter and It Sucked Then I Cried.
She was also open with battles about sobriety, writing in an April 6 blog post — her latest entry — “On October 8, 2021, I single-handedly celebrated six months of sobriety on the floor next to my bed feeling like I was a wounded animal. who wanted to be left alone to die.
“There was no one in my life who could ever understand how symbolic a victory it was for me, albeit one full of tears and sobbing so hard that at one point I thought my body was going to split in two.
Armstrong with one of her children and ex-husband Jon. No other details about her death have been released
She took part in drastic experiments to try and cure her depression, signed up to be rendered brain dead 10 times, and then wrote about it in the book: The Valedictorian of Death. Her previous books include Dear Daughter and It Sucked Then I Cried
Armstrong with her children Leta (left) and Marlo (right)
The grief plunged me into tidal waves of pain. For a few hours I had trouble breathing.’
Armstrong’s third book, The Valedictorian of Death, details her attempts to overcome suicidal depression by taking part in an experiment where doctors rendered her brain dead.
The experiment used propofol anesthesia to flatten her brain for 15 minutes. She was the third person to try.
In an interview with The New York Post about the treatment, she said she was not at all afraid that it could kill her.
She did it ten times and noticed small changes in her behavior.
“It was after the second treatment that I suddenly realized, ‘Oh, I showered without even thinking about it.
“After the third treatment…I started doing my hair and wearing cleaner clothes,” she said.