Brandi Glanville is opening up about just how close she came to breaking point during her recent health battle, and the emotional toll was far heavier than fans realized.
The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star revealed that while dealing with a frightening medical crisis involving ruptured breast implants and a separate facial parasite infection, she spiraled into a mental place she had never experienced before.
“I, in my life, had never contemplated not wanting to be here,” Brandi admitted in a new interview with InTouch, describing moments where she felt overwhelmed to the point of suicidal thoughts. The implants, she said, had been leaking silicone into her body and clogging her lymph nodes — a condition she believes could have turned life-threatening if left untreated. She underwent emergency surgery earlier this month to remove them.
The stress compounded an already brutal year. Brandi says she withdrew from friends, isolated herself, and felt trapped in a cycle of anxiety and illness.
“I don’t remember a time when I wasn’t stressed,” she shared.
What pulled her back from the edge were her sons, Mason, 22, and Jake, 18, whom she shares with ex-husband Eddie Cibrian.
“The only reason I live is for my boys and I need to be here for them,” she said. “Whenever I was having dark thoughts, I was like, ‘I can never put that trauma on my children.’”
Her sons were aware something was deeply wrong. Brandi says they watched her cry daily and were relieved when doctors finally identified the source of her illness.
“They were just so happy I had an answer,” she explained.
Now recovering from surgery, Brandi says her focus is firmly on family and healing. Both of her sons are pursuing creative careers — Jake has started a podcast and is studying acting, while Mason has filmed a Netflix reality project centered on the Calabasas social scene. Brandi jokes that she’s also gained “the daughter I never had” through Mason’s girlfriend, who she says she adores.
