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Well-known blogger Heather Armstrong recently passed away on May 9, 2023, at the age of 47. While speaking to The Associated Press, Heather's boyfriend, Pete Ashdown, revealed that she committed suicide following a relapse, although she was sober for the last 18 months. The news was also confirmed on her Instagram page with a picture. The caption stated:
"Heather Brooke Hamilton aka Heather B. Armstrong aka dooce aka love of my life. July 19, 1975 – May 9, 2023. 'It takes an ocean not to break.' Hold your loved ones close and love everyone else."
Heather Armstrong gained recognition for her blog Dooce, which accumulated millions of readers after its launch in 2001. However, the readership was affected when the popularity of social media increased in 2010.
The blogger was married to Jon Armstrong, with whom she had two kids.
Heather Armstrong's marriage to Jon Armstrong and her struggle with depression
Heather Armstrong tied the knot with Jon Armstrong, a web designer, in 2002, and they welcomed their first child, Leta Elise, two years later. Their second child, Marlo Iris, was born in 2009.
Heather and Jon revealed that they were getting separated in 2012, and their divorce was finalized in 2013. The separation also angered her fans, and things started to affect her mentally, eventually leading to depression. In 2017, she went to the University of Utah's Neuropsychiatric Institute for a clinical trial.
The blogger participated in 10 sessions where she was put in a chemically induced coma for 15 minutes. While speaking to Vox in 2019, she recalled the entire experience and said:
"I was feeling like life was not meant to be lived. When you are that desperate, you will try anything. I thought my kids deserved to have a happy, healthy mother, and I needed to know that I had tried all options to be that for them."
Heather was battling depression ever since she was a college student. She later wrote about her struggle with depression in a book titled The Valedictorian of Being Dead.
Heather Armstrong became popular for her blog Dooce
Heather Armstrong started her career in different startups as a web developer. However, she lost her job when it was discovered that she wrote satires about her work experience on Dooce.
She accumulated around 8.5 million readers on her blog and was earning $40,000 per month from banner ads. Heather was a recipient of different awards and nominations. Although her blog was affected due to the popularity of social media, she remained active on Instagram.
Following her separation from Jon Armstrong, she started to share about mental health issues. Heather and Jon also operated a web design, advertising, and content-generation business called Armstrong Media, LLC.
Heather Armstrong then signed a deal with Kensington Books in 2006 and published a book titled Things I Learned About My Dad: In Therapy in 2008. This was followed by the book It S*cked and Then I Cried: How I Had a Baby, a Breakdown, and a Much Needed Margarita in 2009.
