Heavy Audrina Patridge's daughter is struggling after cousin's death.
A former “Dancing with the Stars” contestant is opening up about the loss of her niece and the impact it has had on her young daughter. Audrina Patridge, who competed on season 7 of DWTS, has revealed how the 2023 loss of her beloved family member has taken a toll on both her and her daughter, 7-year-old Kirra.
Here’s what you need to know:
Audrina Patridge’s Daughter Worries About Her Mom Not Coming Back
Patridge joined Rachel Bilson for her February 26 episode of the “Broad Ideas” podcast. The two ladies talked about some relatively light-hearted topics, such as dating and being single moms, before getting into a much more serious topic.
As Us Weekly noted, in February 2023, Patridge lost her 15-year-old niece Sadie Loza. In November 2023, TMZ reported that Loza’s cause of death was a narcotic overdose.
A source told TMZ that Loza utilized the social media app Snapchat to buy Percocet from someone. Sadly, the Percocet was laced with fentanyl.
In talking with Bilson, Patridge shared that ever since Loza’s death, her daughter Kirra gets very anxious about being dropped off at school.
The former “Dancing with the Stars” contestant explained, “Every time I leave, even when I drop Kirra at school, she has, like, ‘What if you don’t come back? What if you don’t come back?'”
Patridge shared, “So every day when I drop her at school, it’s like, a kiss on the lips, a kiss on the head, and a hug. We have to do that every single day, and if we don’t do it, she cries at school.”
She told Bilson that in talking to Kirra about Loza’s death, she tries to be “Honest, but vague. I don’t want her to be scared.” The little girl has still been left traumatized and worried about losing her mother, too.
The DWTS Alum Is Doing Better Now, a Year After Her Niece’s Death
During the podcast, Patridge noted, “My sister is healing, still.” Loza’s mom still had two sons to take care of, and naturally, they all took the loss hard.
Bilson asked how Patridge herself was doing, as she had been very close to her niece. The former “Dancing with the Stars” contestant replied, “I’m better now. I think last year when it happened, I just, I let myself go. I didn’t really care about working out or staying on top of my house.”
She continued, “It was just a lot of feeling and processing, and just trying to be there for my family. I’m the oldest, so, you know, I was there for my sister, she lived with me for a few months after and I helped with the kids.”
Patridge also admitted that she tries not to let Kirra see her cry over it. As a result, she saves her crying for the shower.
She has also utilized therapy, church, small groups at church, and daily devotionals to help her grieve and move forward.
In addition, the family visits Loza’s gravesite and brings flowers to place there often. Patridge explained that they were “Not going to forget about her just because she’s not here physically.”
Quite a few supporters thanked Patridge for sharing her story on the Instagram post announcing the podcast episode.
One comment read, “Love this episode ❤ thank you for the powerful message!”
Another supporter wrote, “💛💛💛 Thank you for this episode. Heartbreaking that so many kids are being targeted.”