Heartbreaking.
Over Mother’s Day weekend, the Judd sisters and family shared a deeper look inside their family and the woman who led them: Naomi Judd. Lifetime released a four-part docuseries titled The Judd Family: Truth Be Told, which pulled back the curtain on the seemingly picture-perfect ’80s, mother-daughter duo.
The Judds were a show business dynasty outside of the famed mother/daughter duo. While Wynonna and Naomi dominated the country music world, Ashley Judd was a star the acting world. While everything seemed picture perfect on the outside, on the inside, the family was dealing with struggles, which Naomi faced the most. Wynonna and Ashley had spoken about the mental health struggles their mother faced after she tragically took her life in April of 2022.
The death of Naomi Judd was heartbreaking to begin with, given she passed a day before being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame with Wynonna, but it became even more tragic when it was revealed she took her own life at 76 years old. In the weeks after his death, Ashley Judd spoke very openly about the fact that she was the one who discovered her mother and shared that she used a firearm.
“I went upstairs to let her know that the friend was there and I discovered her. I have both grief and trauma from discovering her. My mother is entitled to her dignity and her privacy.
And so there are some things that we would just like to retain as a family, and so I wanna be very careful that when we talk about this today for anyone having those ideas, or those impulses, you know, to talk to someone, to share, to be open, to be vulnerable. There is a national suicide hotline.”
In the new four-episode docuseries, Ashley opened up more about that day at the house before her mother took her life, sharing a heartbreaking final conversation she had with her mother. Ashley noted that she could tell her mother was not in a good headspace before that tragic day. On the day of her death, Ashley shared that her mother texted her “pls help,” which is what prompted Ashley to go to her mother’s home.
Upon arrival, she noticed that her mother was visibly uncomfortable, and eventually, Ashley was able to calm her down. Once she was more settled down, the two had a very raw conversation about her mental health and spoke to Ashley about why she “continued to live” despite her deep struggles. Ashley said her mother named her one of the reasons she chose to keep living.
“One of the things she said was me, and I said, ‘You don’t have to worry about me, Mom. I’m okay. I’m okay.’ And she really clocked that in a really deep way.”
Later that afternoon, her mother went upstairs, and after a bit of time passed, Ashley called for her, but got no response. That was when Ashley found that her mother had harmed herself. Over the next half-hour, Ashley talked to her mother and held her in her final minutes.
“The first thing I said to her was, ‘It’s okay, it’s okay. I’ve seen how much you’ve been suffering.’ And we just breathed together, and I talked to her and told her how much I loved her, and it’s okay to go. When she died, my most earnest wish was to make sure that she was relieved and absolved of her guilt and her shame. I was holding her hand. I was kissing her. She was so soft. She smelled so pretty.”
Truly heartbreaking.
Before the docuseries’ release, the Judd family released a statement when her cause of death was disclosed.
“We have always shared openly both the joys of being family as well its sorrows, too. One part of our story is that our matriarch was dogged by an unfair foe. She was treated for PTSD and bipolar disorder, to which millions of Americans can relate.”
According to the autopsy, Judd had a medical history indicating a “significant” history of anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, chronic idiopathic pneumonitis, hepatitis C, hypertension, and hypothyroidism.
Naomi Judd was a friend to all despite her struggles. Rest in peace.
The Judd Family: Truth Be Told premiered this past weekend on Lifetime, and now can be streamed on demand on their website. It’s also available on Hulu and Philo.
Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or text Crisis Text Line at 741741 if you, or someone you know, is considering suicide.
