Warning: This article deals with discussions of suicide.
Sister Wives revolves around Kody Brown, his four wives, and their 18 children as they navigate through a world where polygamy isn’t considered the norm. However, most of these marriages have broken up over the years. Kody and Janelle share five children together, as well as their late son, Garrison.
Garrison passed away in March 2024 at the age of 25. His death was ruled a suicide and this was especially difficult for the family, considering their lives were being filmed for reality television. At the time, the TLC network promised viewers the show would explore Garrison’s passing. In the most recent episode, we saw the series doing just that.
The Family Opens Up About When They Heard The News Of Garrison’s Passing
Janelle Brown is courageously opening up with her family about her son Garrison Brown’s passing for the first time on Sister Wives. In an episode that aired May 4 on TLC, various family members reflected on the moment they heard Garrison was “gone.” Janelle said she had been texting Garrison “all day long” before he tragically took his own life.
“This was not unusual because he and I talked probably three times a day,” Janelle said in a confessional interview. “I knew he was struggling. I always just picked up the phone and I always make it a point to just talk to him. And it wasn’t really about anything. I think he needed the connection, and I know he was talking to [and] calling his brothers and stuff too.” Janelle said she was laying in bed at 8:30 p.m. when she noticed that Garrison “kind of stopped texting me.”
“I knew he’d been drinking again. He would go through periods where he was really good, and then he just would have a binge, just as part of the cycle, I think,” she said. “So I called [my sons] Logan and Hunter. I texted them … because we’ve tag-teamed. I said, ‘Will you guys see if Garrison will respond to you?’ They said, ‘Mom, we’re on it. We’ll just kind of check on him and make sure he’s OK.’ So, I went to sleep and Gabriel called me and he’s like, ‘Mom, he’s gone.’ And I’m like, ‘What?'”
Garrison’s death was confirmed by People on March 5, 2024. He was only 25 years old. Lieutenant Charles M. Hernandez II of the Flagstaff Police Department said that “Flagstaff Police officers responded to a report of a death inside a home” and “discovered Mr. Brown deceased.” Janelle said that Garrison “really struggled with alcohol” following the news of his passing.
“I don’t know what happened. He was never a drinking kid. He didn’t like it, didn’t like the taste of it,” she said. “He started to drink during COVID. Something happened in this last year, and it really just got him.” According to Janelle, the family “had offered him all the love, all the support, all the help, all the resources” beforehand.
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“I don’t know what happened that night he did that because he’s had other nights like this where he would drink and then pass out, and he would go kind of radio silent, but he’d be back in the morning,” she added. “I don’t know. I don’t know what happened this time.”
TLC Previously Told Viewers Garrison’s Death Would Be Explored In Future Episodes
When Season 19 of Sister Wives premiered, viewers saw a tribute to Garrison. A series of three quote cards appear against a black background at the beginning of the episode. “This season of Sister Wives began filming in late 2022. On March 5, 2024, Kody and Janelle’s son Garrison passed away. He was greatly loved and will be deeply missed,” the cards read.
Kody and Janelle announced Garrison’s death in March 2024. “Janelle and I are deeply saddened to announce the loss of our beautiful boy Robert Garrison Brown. He was a bright spot in the lives of all who knew him. Our loss will leave such a big hole in our lives, that it takes our breath away. We ask that you please respect our privacy and join us in honoring his memory,” Kody wrote on social media.
There were a lot of other family members who paid tribute to Garrison as well. Maddie Brown Brush, one of Garrison’s sisters, was among them. Maddie spoke in the premiere episode about the importance of mental health.
“Mental health is so important and I don’t think we talk about it enough and I don’t think we do enough to bring awareness. It wasn’t bullying. It wasn’t a lack of love that Garrison had. It was mental health,” Maddie told followers in a video she posted to Instagram.
Janelle has been very open with Sister Wives fans in ways that are rare for someone going through such a painful grieving process. She shared a family photo of her posing with her six children, their significant others and her grandchildren on Instagram just days after Garrison’s death.
“I had all my children together last Christmas. It was amazing as it’s hard with everyone’s busy lives to coordinate time like this. I am extremely grateful now that we had pictures taken,” she wrote in the caption.
At the time, TLC said that Garrison’s death would be among the topics explored during the forthcoming season. The season premiere saw Kody dealing with the aftermath of his split from wives Meri and Christine Brown. Janelle and Robyn Brown, his two remaining wives, were also seen struggling with the fallout. Janelle joined Meri and Christine in splitting from Kody since the airing of the episode.
Kody has also been estranged from some of his children. He is seen dealing with this fallout in the episode as well. Kody’s then-strained relationship with Garrison and his brother, Gabe Brown, was explored in previous seasons. Kody’s strict COVID-19 protocols appeared to be a factor behind their issues.
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Janelle Was Unaware Of Garrison’s Struggles Before He Passed
Janelle opened up to People about losing Garrison and how the family was coping with his sudden death in September 2024. “We just had no idea that he was in that place,” Janelle said, adding that “substance abuse” might have been a factor in Garrison’s state of mind before he died. “But he didn’t ever express any kind of extreme sad feelings. In fact, he was very funny, very upbeat. He had a career path that he was excited about. He had a life, he had friends.”
Janelle said that she and her family members “never had any idea that it would go this way,” saying they had no awareness of Garrison’s issues. According to Janelle, there weren’t any obvious warning signs either, and they all heard from Garrison frequently. She recalled how Garrison would check in with everybody toward the end. Janelle also said her son adopted another cat and felt “really excited” about where his career was headed.
“We actually were having conversations. He had all the resources that he could have needed,” Janelle recalled. “This was just such a shock. We just never expected this.”
“I really actually had sort of thought like, ‘Okay, maybe he’s finally starting to get his momentum,'” she continued. “It’s hard in your twenties to find your path. And I was really excited, so it was such a shock… because there was just no indication at all.”
Jannelle shared that “a lot of young men his age” battle mental health issues in silence and, as a result, don’t receive the help they are in need of. “We should be speaking more, especially about mental health for men, and that there’s no shame in getting help and seeking help,” she said. “We just had no idea. This was such a shock to us.”
The family will learn from Garrison’s death and plan on doing things differently going forward. Janelle revealed the family is doing “real check-ins” whenever they speak to each other. “We’re very real and we assess,” Janelle said. “Life situations come up and we’re always like, ‘Okay, so what about mental health?’ We actually say the words and we wait to hear what’s really happening, not just kind of gloss over it. I think we’re definitely putting more stock in mental health in our family.”
Even though they are trying to do things differently, Janelle said she still knows there was nothing she could’ve done differently with Garrison. “I don’t know what we could have done different[ly],” she said. “We were definitely — and I would encourage everybody to be that way — we were having real conversations with him. We were offering resources, we were always talking to him, we were loving him. All the things were there. It really just was something he could not… like the demon he couldn’t get on top of the battle. He couldn’t seem to get over.”
“It just wasn’t for lack of love or lack of anything. And all I can do is think… we always ask ourselves could we have done something more, but I don’t know,” Janelle continued. “I think that’s a grief trap because I think, ultimately, everybody is responsible for their own actions and their own decisions. But we did everything. We really did everything that we could have done. And unfortunately, sometimes [that] still isn’t enough.”
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Janelle wrote a moving tribute to her son on what would’ve been his 26th birthday. “We are missing you terribly today. It’s hard to believe you aren’t here anymore,” she posted. “I still feel you nearby sometimes. And I’m grateful we will see each other again when my journey is completed.”
