When we lose a loved one, it can wreak havoc on us not only emotionally but physically. Our bodies can react to grief in unexpected ways. Some people are unable to sleep, others cannot eat, and some will gain a significant amount of weight. Grief is personal, and the way our bodies react is also unique.
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Hayden Panettiere Suddenly Lost Her Brother In 2023
Hayden Panettiere told People when her brother, Jansen, 28, died from an undiagnosed enlarged heart. Her life changed completely.
“I just ballooned out,” she said of her rapid weight gain. “It didn’t matter what I did, what I ate. I know stress and cortisol running through your body can do that. Now I think my body was protecting itself, shielding itself from the world.”
Jansen was Hayden’s only sibling, and without him, she felt incomplete.
“When I lost him, I felt like I lost half of my soul…I will always be heartbroken about [him], I will never be able to get over it. No matter how many years go by, I will never get over his loss,” she continued.
After her brother died, Hayden Panettiere said she saw photos of herself, and she was so upset with what she saw it triggered agoraphobia. It wasn’t until she found the help of trainer Marine Alton that she felt like herself again. When the pair met, they’d take walks that were good for her physical and mental health,
“My body just started reacting, not just from the working out. It allowed me to release the stress, the high expectations I’d always put on myself,” she said.
As her confidence grew, her agoraphobia lessened, and she was back to work. Her new film, Amber Alert, premieres in theatres on September 27.
This story’s featured image is by Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage.
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