Tragic Details About Mama June

June Shannon came to be known as Mama June after her family reality show "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" aired in 2012. While the show had a large and memorable cast of characters before its cancellation, Mama June still made her mark because of her larger-than-life yet somehow down-to-earth personality and controversial moves. Shortly after the show ended, Shannon set out on her weight loss journey, which proved even more difficult than she imagined. 

The reality TV star started things off by undergoing gastric bypass surgery in 2015 to get her eating under control. However, she proudly shared that she shed nearly 240 pounds before the surgery, and brought her weight down to311 pounds. The procedure only sped up her weight loss and helped her drop to 195 pounds in only six weeks. Speaking to People in 2017, Mama June shared that the surgery was designed to restrict her food portions, so whenever she ended up going overboard, she would vomit. "I can't sit and eat the whole table now," she said.

However, a few years after the surgery, Shannon started to regain some of the weight she had lost. In a 2024 Instagram clip, she revealed that she had put on about 130 pounds because she hadn't been able to focus on her diet amidst a stressful and tragic year. In fact, even when she tried to get back on track with her weight loss journey, things didn't work her way. So, she had chosen to take semaglutide injections, which are generally used as a type 2 diabetes treatment. 

In March 2019, Mama June Shannon and then-boyfriend Eugene "Geno" Edward Doak were arrested for drug possession and drug paraphernalia charges. A May 2019 episode of "Mama June: From Not to Hot" revealed that her family had been concerned about Mama June's well-being before the arrest and had even staged an intervention to steer her in the right direction. During the emotional meeting, Lauryn "Pumpkin" Shannon told her mom that she had been neglecting her well-being by solely focusing on her relationship with a cheater like Geno. 

Meanwhile, Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson teared up as she told her mother she felt unsafe living under her roof. Although Mama June initially listened to her family and entered rehab, she exited the inpatient treatment a mere 12 hours later. Then, in a 2020 episode of the show, the reality TV star admitted that she was hooked on crack cocaine and had spent up to $3,000 daily to fuel her addiction. Additionally, Mama June stated that she even briefly lost her vision due to drugs. 

Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2023, June reflected on her years as an addict, saying, "I don't remember, like, a lot of that time frame. Just bits and pieces and stuff." She also couldn't help but lament the fact that her addiction had cost her nearly a million dollars. However, in a December 2023 chat with TMZ, Mama June was proud to share that she had been sober since the end of January 2020. "I don't do drugs, I don't smoke cigarettes and I don't even drink," she said.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Mama June Shannon's daughter, Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell, passed away in December 2023 at 29 after being diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal carcinoma in January 2023. During a July 2024 episode of "Mama June: Family Crisis," Shannon shared that she was struggling with Cardwell's absence in her life after caring for her throughout her cancer diagnosis. The reality TV star teared up as she admitted that she had grown accustomed to tending to her daughter late at night, and she had continued to do so even after her death. And those late-night hours only made her absence seem more prominent.

She also touched on her experiences with grief in a December 2024 People interview, saying, "Some days are good and I can put on that face. Well, they're not good, but I can act like it's good," she added. "But then there's just some days I can just sit here and I just wallow in it. I don't want to do anything. I don't want to go anywhere." As the family continued to deal with grief, they found ways to keep Cardwell close to their heart. 

Speaking to People in December, Shannon shared that she carried an urn containing Cardwell's ashes whenever possible. And when it wasn't possible, they kept her close by wearing jewelry containing her ashes. Additionally, in a December Facebook post, the reality TV star shared that her late daughter was still a member of their family group chat, and Cardwell's stepsister Lauryn "Pumpkin" Efird constantly played her voice in her car. "I always go to her TikTok and watch her videos all the time and search her name to see all the video[s] people made for her," Shannon wrote.

In December 2023, Michael Cardwell started a legal spat with Mama June Shannon over custody of his wife, Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell's daughter, Kaitlyn. In court documents, Michael argued that although he wasn't Kaitlyn's biological father, he had become a prominent parental presence in her life since he had been caring for her since she was an infant. In contrast, he stated that Mama June and Anna shared an incredibly turbulent relationship and had been estranged several times, which weakened Shannon's presence in her granddaughter's life. 

Shortly after the legal filing came to light, Shannon told TMZ that her daughter had made it clear to her husband that she wanted Kaitlyn to live with her grandmother. After a long-winded court battle, Shannon was officially awarded custody over Kaitlyn in September 2024. Then came the hard part for Shannon: raising a grieving adolescent while also being overwhelmed with grief. 

During a July episode of "Mama June: Family Crisis," her husband Justin Stroud expressed his concerns about her unhealthily suppressing her grief. In response, June said, "You've got to put on a brave face because now I'm raising an 11-year-old child, so you have to show her that life does go on," per Entertainment Tonight. Meanwhile, when she spoke to ET in June, she shared that she desperately wished Anna had been around to parent her daughters the way she wanted. "I even tell Kaitlyn that very often, 'I'll never replace your mother,'" she said.

Although Mama June Shannon and Anna "Chickadee" Cardwell reconnected after her cancer diagnosis, their relationship seemed broken beyond repair for years. Speaking to October People in 2014, Cardwell shared that her mother's then-partner and registered sex offender, Mark McDaniel, molested her when she was eight. Although she made Mama June aware of her boyfriend's acting, she didn't seem to have any empathy for her daughter as Cardwell teared up and said, "'I don't believe you, why would you do this to me?'" Cardwell also recalled, "I was like, 'Mama, he did that to me and I can't do anything about it. You were never there to see it. You were always at work.'" 

Shortly after the heartbreaking conversation, Anna moved in with her grandmother and stayed there until 2012. However, their relationship once again went through a rough patch in 2014 when rumors of Shannon reconciling with McDaniel started swirling. Although her mother had insisted that wasn't the case, Cardwell found it difficult to believe her

 It turns out even TLC may be in the same boat since the controversy became the real reason why "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" was canceled in 2014. In the following year, Cardwell sued TLC and her mother for failing to pay her the $200,000 she had earned from her appearances on the show. However, in a chat with TMZ, Shannon asserted she wasn't a middleman in payments since TLC directly paid everyone involved.

While they never married, Mama June Shannon and Mike "Sugar Bear" Thompson celebrated their relationship with a commitment ceremony in 2013, several years after they welcomed their daughter Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson in 2005. However, the pair called it quits only a year later, and we learned the full extent of their relationship problems. As the couple tried to mend their relationship on "Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars," Shannon shared that although he had cheated on her multiple times with men and women, he had only confessed to one dalliance.

Additionally, when Shannon appeared on "The Wendy Williams Show" in 2017, she alleged that her ex-husband was "very emotionally and physically abusive," per Yahoo! She claimed that he was the culprit behind a car crash and had hurt Lauryn "Pumpkin" Efird's eye. According to Shannon, they had kept his dark side hidden from the cameras. Shortly afterward, Mike told Entertainment Tonight he hadn't raised a hand on the little ones and insisted that his ex-wife was fabricating stories to get back at him. "I never hurt any kid," he said.

Meanwhile, another one of Shannon's tumultuous relationships began when her paths crossed with "Eugene Edward "Geno" Doak," and she introduced him on-screen during an episode of "Mama June: From Not to Hot" in 2018. Shortly before the pair got arrested in March 2019, they were spotted in a heated argument, where Doak allegedly warned her that he would endanger her life, per TMZ. Although he was subsequently charged with domestic violence, Shannon dropped the complaint against him in an admittedly regrettable move. Speaking to TooFab in 2022, Shannon admitted that she only dropped the charges to protect herself and her family because she feared Doak would endanger them.

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.