Audrina Patridge opened up about her 15-year-old niece’s heartbreaking fentanyl death, revealing that the “hard” passing left her so devastated that she was unable to “stay on top of her own health.”
The Hills alum, 38, tragically lost her niece Sadie Raine Loza in February 2023 after the teen took a painkiller laced with fentanyl.
Now, the actress has opened up about how the devastating loss affected her and her family during a recent appearance on Rachel Bilson and Olivia Allen’s Broad Ideas podcast.
“Last year when it happened, I just went with the flow, I didn’t really care about working out or staying on top of my health,” she recalled.
Audrina Patridge opened up about her 15-year-old niece’s heartbreaking fentanyl death, revealing the “hard” death left her so devastated she couldn’t “stay on top of her health.”
The Hills alum, 38, tragically lost her niece Sadie Raine Loza in February 2023 after the teen took a fentanyl-laced painkiller.
Now, the actress has opened up about how the devastating loss affected her and her family during a recent appearance on Richel Bilson and Olivia Allen’s Broad Ideas podcast.
“It was just a lot of healing and processing and just trying to be there for my family.”
Audrina explained that her sister and Sadie’s mother, Casey Loza, 37, stayed with her for “a few months” after the shock that she died, as did her two children, aAnd while caring for them helped her “keep busy,” she admitted it forced her to keep her own devastation inside.
‘I was just helping everyone and that helped keep me busy. But then there were times when I didn’t want them to see me cry,” she continued.
But he added: “My crying moment was in the shower, I just took it out in the shower.”
‘It’s hard and everyone heals differently. It really affected me, last year was bad in many ways. I’m glad it’s a new year, a new beginning.’
Audrina credited “therapy” and “going to church” with helping her heal.
“Now I’m just trying to be more positive about it,” she said. ‘It’s really about moving forward and trying to raise awareness and educate parents.
‘And we still celebrate her and tell stories about her. We still go to the cemetery and bring flowers all the time. We are not going to forget about her just because she is not here physically.”
The star also revealed how the tragic death affected her daughter, Kirra, seven, and said the youngster is now terrified Audrina will leave and “not come back” one day.
“Last year, when it happened, I just went with the flow, I didn’t care much about exercising or taking care of my health,” Audrina recalls.
Audrina explained that her sister and Sadie’s mother, Casey Loza (seen together in 2019), 37, stayed with her for “a few months” after the death, as did her two children.
And while caring for them helped her “keep busy,” she admitted it forced her to keep her own devastation inside. Casey is seen with her daughter before her death
“Since Sadie died, every time I leave… even when I drop Kira off at school, she’s like, ‘What if you don’t come back?'” he shared.
‘Every day, when I drop her off at school, (I have to give her) a kiss on the lips and on the head and a big hug; We have to do that every day and if we don’t, she cries at school. .’
He said his daughter “knew a little bit” about death because her pastor at the “private Christian school” she attends had talked about it in her class.
But she admitted Kirra still “had a lot of questions” after Sadie’s passing.
‘I was trying to be honest but vague, you know? I don’t want him to be afraid, but now he has this trauma of (he always wonders), what if you don’t come back?’ she revealed.
As she reflected on the death, Audrina explained that Sadie had met the person who sold her the intertwined pill on Snapchat.
“(These dealers) are like predators who take advantage of these high school kids and give them these menus (of different types of drugs),” he revealed. “It’s everywhere, I feel like that generation is being attacked.”
Audrina said she believes the problem comes from social media, adding: “Social media is making kids depressed or not feeling good enough with all the filters.”
‘It’s not entirely the fault of Snapchat or social media, it’s no one’s fault. This is how life is progressing right now.
“But no one has dealt with this before, so we don’t know who to blame or how to save our children or what to do to make changes.”
As for her advice to others, she recommended taking more time to “be a part of your children’s lives.”
Audrina credited “therapy” and “going to church” for helping her heal, adding, “I’m trying to be more positive about it.” It’s really about moving forward and trying to raise awareness.
While reflecting on the death, Audrina explained that Sadie (seen) had met the person who sold her the intertwined pill on Snapchat.
Audrina said she believes the problem comes from social media, adding: “Social media is making kids depressed or not feeling good enough with all the filters.” Sadie looks
During an appearance on America’s Most Wanted in January, Audrina, accompanied by her sister, said that Sadie had sought out Percocet to deal with back pain after being involved in a car accident.
‘Look what they’re doing: if they play Roblox, learn to play it. Look at what they’re doing there and what they’re talking about so you can have something in common with them,’ he suggested.
Following Sadie’s death last year, Audrina shared a touching tribute to the teenager.
‘My heart hurts even writing this. “My beautiful niece is now in heaven,” she wrote at the time on Instagram.
‘I know it’s not goodbye forever, but it’s the hardest thing to say goodbye for now. We will miss you and cherish every moment we had with you.”
Months later, TMZ reported that Sadie had died of a drug overdose and that police were looking for who may have supplied the narcotics that killed her.
During an appearance on the Fox series America’s Most Wanted in January, Audrina, accompanied by her sister, explained that Sadie had sought out Percocet to deal with back pain after being involved in a car accident.
The death came amid a national crisis over fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is 80 to 100 times stronger than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin.
It is often added to drugs such as cocaine or heroin to increase their potency or make them more profitable, which can lead to an overdose, especially if the buyer does not know that the drug is mixed.
According Drug Abuse Statistics.orgLess than 0.07 ounces of fentanyl causes certain death and the drug is a factor in 53 percent of drug overdoses.