TikTok star Emilie Kiser slams grieving criticism after son, 3, tragically drowned in family pool
Warning: This article contains discussion of child loss which some readers may find distressing.
Emilie Kiser has spoken out on her decision not to publicly discuss the death of her toddler, Trigg, who died by drowning earlier this year.
On May 12, three-year-old Trigg fell into the Kiser family’s backyard pool, after which emergency responders were dispatched and administered CPR.
The Arizona-based child was quickly taken to Chandler Regional Medical Center and then to Phoenix Children's Hospital in critical condition after the tragic incident.
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Six days later (May 18), Trigg was pronounced dead, with Sonu Wasu, CPD's public information officer, stating: "Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the child's family and loved ones during this unimaginable time.”
After initially retreating from posting family-friendly content online, Trigg’s mother, popular influencer Kiser, 26, broke her silence in August, thanking fans for the ‘love and compassion’ they’d shown her.
On September 20, the social media star returned to the platform with videos featuring her and husband Brady Kiser’s newborn son, Theodore, as well as content centered around shopping and trying new coffee shops.
In her latest clip, Kiser has opened up about losing her firstborn child.
She remarked on criticism she’d received since returning to the online sphere, claiming in a clip, posted on Monday (October 13).: “Unless you have lost someone and gone through grief, you will not understand what you would do or how you would act.
“Everybody loses someone or something at some point in their lives, but losing a child is literally the worst pain. And I would not want anybody to go through it.”
The online mogul claimed she was hurt by people commenting on her videos that she hadn’t ‘opened up’ or ‘grieved’ the tragedy properly.
“For people to say, ‘If this were me, I would just be crippled and I would be thinking about them all day and I wouldn’t be able to continue on,’ do you not think that everywhere I look in my house, I don’t see my child?” she said.
“His photos are everywhere. His artwork is everywhere. … I love that because he’s my child and I never want to forget him. But I’m not showing that on camera. I’m not showing you all those things.”
She explained that she would no longer be sharing Theodore, whom she nicknamed as Teddy, and told fans she is ‘not ready to share other things’.
“I’m not ready to talk about other things. And that is OK. Those are the things I am unpacking in my therapy sessions and with professionals and with my family.
“Those are not things I think I should be coming on the internet and unpacking with millions of people.”
Kiser reiterated that she is ‘very much processing the loss of [her] son’ and that while people are ‘entitled to say what they want about [her] grief journey, they don’t necessarily see the ‘full scope of things’.
“I am sharing the moments that I can bear to film and that I want to film, because it kind of helps me step out of my reality for a second, and do my job, which I very much enjoy. I genuinely enjoy content creation. That’s why I do it.”
She added that while she believed she didn’t ‘need’ to ‘defend’ her decision, she wanted to remind viewers that what she ‘chooses’ to share ‘could not be further’ from her life.
Months after Trigg’s death, officials submitted a criminal charge recommendation for Brady, who police stated was home watching sports when the incident occurred.
They wanted to charge the grieving father with one count of child abuse, a Class Four Felony.
A statement shared by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office later confirmed there was ‘no likelihood of conviction’.
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact The Compassionate Friends on (877) 969-0010.
Topics: Celebrity, Emilie Kiser, Social Media, TikTok, US News, Parenting
Ella Scott