Tragic Details About Kristin Cavallari's Life

On the surface, Kristin Cavallari seems to have it all. Cavallari lives a lavish lifestyle, she's a mom to three beautiful children, and she's a successful reality TV star and podcast host. But the former "The Hills" and "Laguna Beach" star's life hasn't been easy.

Cavallari has been very open about her struggles, including the toll being in the public eye has taken on her mental health. The star told The Cut in 2021 she stopped reading comments on her social media because it affected her state of mind. "It's just not good for my mental health, good or bad. I don't think that people praising you constantly is normal, and neither are people tearing you down constantly — it's not normal," she shared. "Social media is really robbing us of our happiness, I think. We're constantly comparing our worst to everybody else's best and that's a really dangerous place to be," she added. But, sadly, Instagram interactions are far from the only tragic thing this star has endured.

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.

Kristin Cavallari lived every family's worst nightmare in 2015 when her brother, Michael Cavallari, went missing and was found dead days later, shortly before Christmas. The circumstances surrounding his death at age 30 were particularly harrowing, as he'd been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and his body was discovered without clothing in the wilderness.

Cavallari has spoken multiple times about how she coped with the unimaginable loss, giving fans touching updates on her sorrow. "Grief is a wild thing and I actually feel like it is like a drug. And it's a roller coaster. It comes in waves, you know. You finally think you're okay and then it's like bam, it hits you again," she said on "Let's Be Honest with Kristin Cavallari" in March 2024. However, "The Middle" star shared sees signs she thinks are from her brother, which, coupled with her belief in the afterlife, gives her comfort. "I just really think that we will all see each other again when we die. I really do," she said. 

However, that hasn't stopped the Cavallari family from having difficult, nagging questions about his passing. "As a family, my mom and my dad and myself, you never stop asking yourself those questions of had we done this differently would there have been a different outcome? If he was on medication, would it have been different?" Cavallari told Williamson County Television in 2023. "I don't know that you ever really fully move on from those things and having those thoughts. It's just one of those things that will be with me forever."

The sad death of Kristin Cavallari's brother isn't the only tough family tragedy she's experienced. Cavallari has a rocky relationship with her dad, Dennis Cavallari, and the two have been estranged since 2021. During a 2023 episode of "Let's Be Honest with Kristin Cavallari," she called her dad a "narcissist," and said of cutting him out of her life, "[It] has honestly been the best thing I've ever done." The former "Laguna Beach" star opened up about an incident that cemented their estrangement, sharing it involved her three children. "For years it was like, God, I don't even want to talk, I don't want to be around him. But I felt so guilty about it. And then something happened with my kids and it crossed the line. And I was like, you know what, I'm f**king done. And he blamed me for it. Threw everything back in my face. And I was just like, what am I doing? Life's too short." She added, "I was always like, I can take it. I can take the abuse, I have my whole life, but it's like when you start now messing with my kids, I'm not doing it."

Cavallari had previously shared during a 2020 episode of "Very Cavallari" that she and her dad initially grew apart following Michael Cavallari's death. Cameras rolled as Cavallari and her then husband Jay Cutler met with her dad after she contacted him to learn more about her family tree. "With my brother being gone there's no one else, on my side of the family, carrying on the Cavallari name," she shared (via Daily Mail).

For so many people, four-legged friends become a part of the family, and that was no different for Kristin Cavallari. The podcast host shared the heartbreaking loss of her beloved dog Bardot in 2021, posting a tribute to her cherished pooch on Instagram mere hours after her passing. "She was the sweetest, best dog on the planet. She lived many lives with me..from 2 single gals living in West Hollywood, to a full blown family, back to being single...she was with me every step of the way," Cavallari wrote. "The kids spoiled her this weekend and we all got to say our goodbyes. We love you Barzy..you'll be missed greatly." The star also shared a touching photo of a candle on her Instagram Stories. "The kids and I lit this candle to help guide her," she captioned it (via Daily Mail).

Cavallari had previously shared various photos of Bardot by her side on Instagram. She popped up in an adorable 2020 Halloween family photo, while a 2021 upload showed Bardot sitting near Cavallari's daughter. "My little ladies," she captioned the image.

Kristin Cavallari was married to NFL star Jay Cutler from 2013 until they both filed for divorce seven years later, marking one of the most devastating celebrity breakups of 2020. But Cavallari has shared their married life wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. She got candid about their relationship on "Let's Be Honest with Kristin Cavallari" in October 2024, explaining, "My heart was broken for years in my marriage." The star had previously opened up about her ex during a 2021 appearance on "Off The Vine." "We aren't getting a divorce because of love lost, which made it really challenging because we were crazy about each other and so I just decided I didn't want to be in a toxic relationship anymore and I had to break it off," she told host Kaitlyn Bristowe. Cavallari added she'd questioned her decision a lot and even gave her romantic relationship with Cutler a second chance, but ultimately knew it was the right choice to split.

Things got messy in the wake of their breakup, too. Cavallari shared in court documents filed in April 2020, "[Cutler] is guilty of such inappropriate marital conduct as renders further cohabitation unsafe and improper" (via Us Weekly). Sources also told Us Weekly that month Cutler was supposedly quick to anger. "Jay has a temper. He's a shouter. He didn't have an issue about calling her out or yelling at her in front of other people. That experience was really embarrassing her," they claimed. Thankfully though, things got better between the co-parents. "We are in the best place that we've been in ... Okay, it took four years but things are really good with us now," Cavallari said on her podcast.

In 2022, Kristin Cavallari got candid with fans about her health journey, sharing a series of photos on Instagram that demonstrated her changing body. "I've come a long way from a few years ago and I'm really proud of the progress I've made," she wrote in the caption (Cavallari has had a stunning transformation, after all). "I don't even recognize the girl in those other 2 photos," she added, referencing snaps that showed her with a much thinner frame. Cavallari clarified she hadn't experienced an eating disorder, sharing her weight loss was due to stress.

The star spoke again about her weight in June 2024. Cavallari responded to a fan on "Let's Be Honest with Kristin Cavallari" after they pointed out, "You were very thin while filming 'Very Cavallari.'" "I was very thin," Cavallari confirmed, sharing she weighed 114 pounds at that moment but got down to 102 pounds filming the reality show. Medical News Today states a moderate weight for people 5'3", Cavallari's height, is between 107 pounds and 135 pounds. "I was so unhappy and so stressed out ... That was being in a very unhappy marriage, quite honestly. Literally, I was so unhappy," she added, noting she tried to keep herself busy to distract from what she was feeling.

Fortunately, Cavallari knows the importance of a healthy, balanced lifestyle and has shared her tips with fans. "Eating well to me means enjoying your food and having what I call 'food freedom,' where you can enjoy what you're eating without beating yourself up. You can eat anything in moderation," she told Eating Well in 2023.