Matt Brown‘s family is feeling a lot of different and complicated emotions following his tragic death.
As we previously reported, the Alaskan Bush People star was found dead in a Washington river over the weekend — just days after his family announced to the public that they feared the worst had happened to him. They suspect he died by suicide. He was only 42 years old. How heartbreaking.
Related: Noah Brown Reveals Final Conversation With Brother Matt
As you can imagine, this is an incredibly difficult time for his loved ones. Family sources told TMZ on Tuesday that they are feeling everything from grief and shock to even relief over his death. The last part may surprised some fans, but others know Matt has long been battling drug and alcohol addiction, which greatly impacted his family. In fact, his brother, Bear Brown, revealed last week that the reality star “had fallen off the wagon” again before his death.
The insiders explained his substance abuse issues caused a lot of anxiety for the family, and they often worried about what would happen or what condition he would be in when he re-entered their lives. According to the news outlet’s new reporting, things got so bad that most of the Brown family actually cut ties with Matt years ago because they no longer wanted to support him amid his struggles with addiction. Gabe Brown reportedly was the only relative to maintain contact with the television personality.
The sources said some family members are more relaxed now because they no longer need to be concerned about “when and where he will appear and strike next.” So sad…
However, all this doesn’t mean the family has no sympathy for Matt, of course. The insiders stressed the family had compassion for his struggles and the pain he suffered from during his addiction. They are also feeling grief and heartbreak over how things ended. But at the same time, his behavior reportedly was unpredictable, and it was “scary” to his relatives, so they cannot help but feel relieved at the end of the day.
Oof. It sounds like Matt and the family has been through so much over the years.
We continue to keep them in our thoughts during this tough time.
If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, help is available. Consider contacting the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, by calling, texting, or chatting, or go to 988lifeline.org.
If you or someone you know is experiencing substance abuse, help is available. Consider checking out the resources SAMHSA provides at https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline or check out StartYourRecovery.org.
[Image via Noah Brown/Bear Brown/Matt Brown/Instagram]
