Ashley Judd's mom, county musician Naomi Judd, died by suicide in 2022. Ashley recently opened up about the grief and trauma that came from losing her mom when speaking to Anderson Cooper on CNN Audio’s All There Is podcast. “My mother’s death was traumatic and unexpected because it was death by suicide and I found her," the actress shared.
Ashley and Anderson spoke about suicide openly, as Anderson has also experienced losing a loved one by suicide. Anderson's brother Carter died by suicide in 1988 at age 23.
“One of the things I have found so hard about losing my brother to suicide was, I get stuck in how his life ended and the violence of it," Anderson admitted, tearing up as he spoke of his brother.
Ashley thanked him for sharing, and said, "I really honor the place in you that’s coming from."
“I think we all deserve to be remembered for how we lived," she told him, "and how we died is simply part of a bigger story."
Even though her mom's death was traumatic, she shared that she was "so thankful" that she was there.
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"My grief was in lockstep with trauma because of the manner of her death and the fact that I found her," she explained. "So what I needed to do first was vomit."
"I held my mother as she was dying," she shared.
Still, Ashley is "so glad that [she] was there."
"Even when I walked in that room, and I saw that she had harmed herself, the first thing out of my mouth was, ‘Mama, I see how much you’ve been suffering and it is OK. It is OK to go. It’s OK to go. I am here. It is OK to let go. I love you. Go see your daddy. Go see Papa Judd. Go be with your people," she shared.
She continued, saying, "I just got in the bed with her and held her and talked to her and said, ‘Let it all go. Be free. All was forgiven long ago. All was forgiven long ago. Leave it all here. Take nothing with you. Just be free.’"
Anderson acknowledged that “it’s an extraordinary blessing that you were able to do that."
Shortly after her mom's death, Ashley took to Instagram to thank everyone for the love that they showed her as she began to navigate her grief.
"Your outpouring is reaching me. Thank you for every thought, prayer, message, text, email, post, expression. We each are alone and we are in fellowship, broken and held, protected from nothing and sustained in everything. It’s the beginning of an old story, life and death, loss and life," she wrote at the time. "Be free, my beautiful mother. Be free."
In 2023, Anderson also wrote about his grief on Instagram. "It is 35 years today since my brother, Carter Cooper, died. I think of him, and miss him, every day," he wrote at the time.
Note: If you or any of your loved ones are struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can always reach out to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling 988. They are available 24/7 by phone or online chat.
