Democracy Dies in Darkness

Heather Armstrong, who made it okay to say motherhood was hard, dead at 47

The pioneering blogger behind Dooce.com upended women’s media and laid the ground for the influencer industry

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Updated May 10, 2023 at 5:34 p.m. EDT|Published May 10, 2023 at 4:39 p.m. EDT
A selfie of mommy blogger Heather Armstrong in Salt Lake City. (AP)
6 min

Heather Armstrong, a pioneering blogger who transformed women’s media and altered the public perception of motherhood, has died at the age of 47.

Armstrong, who also went by her maiden name, Heather Hamilton, died by suicide, according to her boyfriend, Pete Ashdown, who told the Associated Press that he found her Tuesday night at their Salt Lake City home. Ashdown said that Armstrong had recently relapsed into alcoholism after remaining sober for more than 18 months.