Heather Armstrong, a pioneering American “mommy blogger” has passed on at the age of 47.
Ms Armstrong who gained widespread recognition for detailing the ups and downs of parenthood on her blogging site Dooce, was found dead after police officers from Salt Lake City PD responded to a call. A preliminary investigation determined she died by suicide. No other details were given.
Fans of Heather learned of the tragic news on Wednesday, May 10, following a statement that read “Heather Brooke Hamilton aka Heather B. Armstrong aka dooce aka love of my life. July 19, 1975 – May 9, 2023.”
Her boyfriend Pete Ashdown told the Associated Press he had found Ms Armstrong on Tuesday night in their Utah home. She had two children with her former husband and business partner, Jon Armstrong. Heather began Dooce in 2001 and built it into a lucrative career.
She was one of the first and most popular “mommy bloggers”, writing frankly about her children, relationships and other challenges. It led to a 2009 memoir, “It Sucked and then I Cried: How I Had a Baby, a Breakdown and a Much Needed Margarita”.
The same year, Ms Armstrong was named in Forbes’ annual list of the 30 most influential women in media. At the height of its popularity, Dooce received more than eight million visitors a month, and her earnings from it totaled $30,000 to $50,000 each month.