Savannah Chrisley Says Her Suicide Attempt Before Family’s First Show Was a ‘Cry for Help’

The “Chrisley Knows Best” alum was talking with mental health advocate Patrick Custer when she admitted to the traumatic experience she now feels was “a cry for help.” She said she wasn’t completely sure of the timeline but believes it happened shortly before her family’s first foray into reality television.

She said that her inability to pinpoint exactly when it happened could be her mind blocking it out due to trauma, or even possible “side effects to what I had done to where it affected my memory but it all really was a blur.”

The reality star said she does recall waking up in the hospital with her parents, Todd and Julie, by her side. “Even at that time, I remember lying to the doctors because I didn’t want to be held at the hospital,” she shared. Savannah, 25, said she was 15 or 16 years old at the time.

She said that it was “hard coming off of that straight into reality television in front of the world and having even more thrown at you.” As a result, Savannah said she remembers “masking over, like I was fine.”

She was also adamant that there’s “nothing wrong” with her, instead saying, “it was just a bad moment.” Nevertheless, she credits her parents for stepping up when she needed them.

“My dad spent countless hours with me every day, just trying to get me to talk,” she recalled. “me his life stories, his trauma. Trying to let me know like, ‘Hey, I’m not this perfect person you’ve always thought I am. I’ve gone through stuff in my life, too. I’ve had trauma. I want you to feel comfortable.’ And talking to me about it. And it took me a while.”

In a previous episode of her podcast in November 2022, Savannah shared that she “suffered from really bad depression,” per Entertainment Tonight. “I remember that next morning waking up and there being a devotional that my dad had gotten in his email from Joel Osteen, and that’s why I speak so highly of Joel, because he kinda saved me.”

“The devotional was Romans 8:28, and it stated that through whatever hardships and adversities you go through, God’s gonna turn around and use it to your advantage,” she shared. “And it was literally like, in a snap of a finger, I went from this anger towards God, to in my heart saying, ‘All right, God, you know what, why not me?’ Like, what makes me any better to have to go through these things than anyone else?”

These days, Savannah has her hands full while both of her parents are spending time behind bars for tax fraud. She has stepped up to raise her 16-year-old brother, Grayson, and 10-year-old niece, Chloe.

In November, Todd was sentenced to 12 years behind bars, while Julie was given seven. The couple reported to jail on January 17 after they were found guilty of bank fraud and tax evasion.

The Chrisley patriarch, 53, is serving his time in a Florida prison while the family matriarch, 50, is facing lockdown in Kentucky. The couple will also be required to undergo 16 months of probation after their release.

Savannah has continued to celebrate her parents during their incarceration, recently honoring Todd’s birthday in April and Mother’s Day for Julie. She also defended her parents against “nasty” marriage rumors earlier this month.

“To clear up NASTY rumors from people who would love nothing more than to see my family torn apart,” she wrote on Mother’s Day, “my parents are MADLY in love with each other and will come out of this trial even stronger and more in love than before.”

Elsewhere in her caption, Savannah wrote, “Mothers Day – this one hit hard! I’ve been DREADING the holidays. First it was Easter, then Dads Birthday, now Mothers Day, and on the 16th it will be Grays 17th birthday. A lot of firsts happening…and frankly…I HATE IT! I’m angry! I hold it all in pretty well…I’ve mastered the art of compartmentalizing. I may be 25… but I miss my mama so bad my heart hurts.”

“For those that have misconceptions of who JULIE CHRISLEY is… let me help you – SHE IS an OUTSTANDING mother, SHE IS and even more AMAZING wife, SHE IS an even better daughter, SHE IS one hell of a friend, SHE IS a woman of God, SHE IS a breast cancer survivor, SHE IS a mother to more than just the children she birthed, SHE IS loyal, SHE IS fierce, SHE IS… EVERYTHING that I hope to be,” her message continued.

“I MISS YOU MAMA ❤️ I will forever fight for you,” Savannah wrote before her message concluded by calling out critics.