Tragic Details About Hallmark Star Lacey Chabert's Life

Hallmark's sweetheart Lacey Chabert has been spreading joy and positivity around ever since her acting career began. She has been in more than 30 Hallmark movies, which practically always have happy endings. She's even brought that fairytale closure to people nationwide in her Hallmark series "Celebrations," where the star organizes heartfelt events celebrating local heroes and do-gooders. 

Before her Hallmark days, Chabert got her start as a child stage actor when she played young Cosette in the 1992 Broadway production of "Les Miserables." After her stint in theater, the actor rose to stardom in early American dramas like "All My Children" and "Party of Five."

Of course, Chabert is notably famous for her portrayal of Gretchen Wieners in the 2004 blockbuster "Mean Girls," where she coined one of the greatest slang terms of the early 2000s. However, underneath all her professional success and personal joy, Chabert's life hasn't always been "so fetch." From grief to mental health issues, the actor has not been shy about her struggles. But for the most part, Chabert keeps an upbeat outlook. "I have realized that there is beauty in everything," she said on the "You Are Beautiful" podcast. "Even in tragedy, there is beauty."

Since becoming a mom after welcoming her daughter Julia in September 2016, Lacey Chabert hasn't stopped gushing about life as a parent. However, the "Mean Girls" alum also knows the stresses of going back to work after having kids. Chabert has said her first priority will always be her daughter, but also wants to set an example for Julia, showing her that you can be a mom and also have a successful career. "I'm very thankful that I'm also able to continue working," she told People magazine. "I hope to set that example for her to let her know that you can do it all, but with a lot of help and support!"

The Hallmark actor felt the hardships of working mom life when she had to skip her daughter's first day of school in 2022, having to be on set to film her movie. "We [F]acetime nonstop, and she's in the best hands with my husband and sister, but of course, I still feel terrible that I'm not there," she wrote in an Instagram post about it. Thankfully, she felt the support of the other moms on set, specifically the wardrobe department, who sent her flowers to acknowledge the heartache around missing one of her child's milestones.

The uncertainty of life beyond the COVID-19 lockdown was a cause of stress for most of the world. For Lacey Chabert, the pandemic heightened her existing anxiety, especially when worrying about family. In an essay she wrote for Guideposts Magazine, Chabert described her trouble with trying to hide her anxiety, especially from her daughter Julia. However, the chaos from the shutdown made it difficult for the star to stay calm. "I worried about my loved ones, especially my parents," she wrote. "I was concerned for their health and well-being." When she could normally frequent their house in Texas, the lockdown prevented her from checking on them, adding to her stress.

Her anxiety from being trapped in one place often wore her down, but she said her faith in God kept her stable and hopeful. "Even when we can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, because of God's faithfulness we can still trust that it is there," she penned. During the pandemic, Chabert said she busied her days with organizing the clutter in her household. In her essay, she remembered finding her first Bible, with a pink cover, which she read to keep her faith grounded and hold on to the memory of a time when she wasn't grappling with immense anxiety.

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

Lacey Chabert's world collapsed when her older sister Wendy died from a heart attack on November 22, 2021. The actor announced the sudden loss on Instagram, saying, "Our hearts are shattered into a million pieces that I don't know how we will ever put back together again now that you're gone." The caption went along with a photo of Wendy as a teenager from 1994. Her sister left behind two sons. 

Chabert continued to update her followers on her intense journey through grief. Two months after Wendy's death, Chabert posted to Instagram again to describe the pain as she grappled with the absence of her sister, sharing a photo of the two of them as children with beaming smiles. "I still reach for my phone ten times a day to text or call her before I remember that I can't," she wrote in the post. In the long caption, Chabert described the physical toll that grief had taken, including the occasional shortness of breath because of heartache. She also noted how funny her sister was, adding that her young daughter, Julia, was picking up the same humor. "Julia has always reminded my whole family of Wendy," she wrote.

Ever since losing her sister, Lacey Chabert has been an open book about the mental health struggles she has endured while mourning Wendy. When speaking with Lawrence Zarian on the podcast "You Are Beautiful," Chabert described the drastically different forms of grief she has observed her family go through. "You grieve on so many different levels and that's something I never expected or understood," she said.

In describing her own struggles, Chabert said, "I've been filled with terrible anxiety these past couple of years, for all the different reasons," naming her sister's death as a large part. However, the Hallmark star feels that the roadblocks can be overcome through willpower, and after some time, she said she found growth in herself. Now, Chabert lives a slower life, taking in all the glorious moments with a new appreciation for the world.

If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

Lacey Chabert has dealt with lots of grief in her lifetime. Aside from unexpectedly losing her sister in 2021, Chabert's beloved grandmother passed away in 2019. Chabert explained to Southern Living that she grew up next door to her grandmother's house, and they were very close. She said that she would frequent her grandma's house, stopping in to bake cookies. "She was one of my very best friends and my biggest cheerleader, so her passing was heartbreaking but I love that I have those memories with her of cooking in her kitchen," she told the outlet.

After her grandmother's passing, Chabert wrote a heartfelt message on Facebook about how much her "Nanny" meant to her. "I hear you in my head nonstop," she wrote, noting how she never realized how much her inner dialogue had been influenced by her grandmother's voice. "I think the impact you had on my life, my values, runs deeper than I ever realized," she added. While her grandmother is no longer physically with her, Chabert is reminded of her presence through Christmas recipes and gift wrapping, which she has basically made a career of doing. Since Christmas is very special for her, it's no wonder she is the pillar of Hallmark's holiday movies.