Tish said her mother’s death also compounded her troubled feelings
Miley Cyrus walks the red carpet at the Grammys in gold
Miley Cyrus wore a sheer gold outfit when she walked the red carpet at the 2024 Grammy Awards.
Miley Cyrus’ mom Tish is admitting she severely struggled with her divorce from Billy Ray before finding a light at the end of the tunnel.
During her appearance on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast with her daughter, and Miley’s eldest sister, Brandi, Tish spoke about the decision to end her nearly 30-year marriage.
During COVID, Billy Ray went back to Tennessee while she stayed in California, and "during that period, [I] just took a really hard look at life, my life. Like, what was I going to do? Because it had not been in a good place for a long time."
She continued, "I think I did stay so long out of fear, literal fear of being alone. I met him when I was 23, 24. [As I] grew up, he was such a huge part of that. And then being alone and all of a sudden just having the weight of the world of my shoulders in some ways and was able to breathe and smoke pot and garden, and go skinny-dipping in my pool, that’s what I did during COVID."
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Miley Cyrus' parents, Billy Ray and Tish, divorced in 2022 after two earlier filings. ( David Crotty/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
During Covid, Tish’s mother passed away, compounding her troubled feelings.
"It was so crazy, because, honestly, my two biggest fears in life were always being alone and my mom passing away. I was like, ‘I just don’t know if I’ll survive when my mom dies,’" she said, noting she had "to go through it alone."
"And I had, like, one month of a, honestly, complete psychological breakdown. It was the worst thing — like, honestly. It was not good."
Tish said she worked with celebrity psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen, who she mentioned Miley has spoken with as well, and asked him at one point to "please put me in a mental hospital," to which she said he responded, "‘I do not think that’s the best thing for either of us.'"
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Tish revealed she had a "complete psychological breakdown" during the end of her marriage, coupled with the death of her mother. ( Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
"I could not eat. I could not sleep. I could not stop crying. I literally weighed, like, 130 [pounds]," Tish recalled. "I don’t have my mom, and then I don’t have my husband that’s been my husband for 30 years. Like, holy crap, I’m scared."
Tish and Billy Ray formally divorced in 2022, but it was not their first filing. Billy Ray filed for divorce in 2010, but the two worked things out and reconciled a year later. In June 2013, Tish filed for divorce again, but the couple reunited a month later.
They share five children in total, Brandi and Trace, from Tish’s first husband, Baxter Neal Helson, who were later adopted by Billy Ray, and Miley, Braison, and Noah. Billy Ray also has a son, Christopher Cody Cyrus, from a relationship with Kristin Luckey.
At the time of the divorce, they revealed they had been separated for two years.
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Tish said she struggled during the divorce, recalling, ""I could not eat. I could not sleep. I could not stop crying." (Kevin Mazur/WireImage)
When asked if she wished she had left sooner, Tish said, "Yes, but then I’m like, maybe that wouldn’t have been right either. Because I really didn’t want Noah to still be young, but looking back on it, it would have been better for her had I left. It would have been much better."
Brandi offered her support to her mom, saying, "I’m so happy she was able to break free from it and found what she’s found with her husband now because she deserves that. You were such a martyr for so long for the family and just for the sake of keeping it all together, part of me wishes you were able to get yourself out of it sooner, but its admirable that you did it [anyway.]"
Tish admitted she "never wanted to get a divorce," but she had stopped "playing the part" of a married couple during quarantine and "[was] looking at myself and going, ‘What in the heck are you doing?' I literally just had made that firm decision, and I’m moving on with my life. And, you know what, girl? It worked out for the best."
Following the divorce, Billy Ray married musician Firerose, and Tish married "Prison Break" star Dominic Purcell.
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Tish married "Prison Break" star Dominic Purcell in 2023. (MEGA/GC Images)
Miley hosted her mother’s nuptials, and Brandi and Trace attended, while Braison and Noah skipped out on the event. Despite their absence, a source told "Entertainment Tonight" that "there is no family drama between Tish, Noah and Braison."
On "Call Her Daddy," Tish joked that Purcell was her "hall pass" while she was married to Billy Ray, and said she used to jokingly be sad they weren’t together.
She revealed that in 2016, Purcell messaged her on Instagram, but she "didn’t see it for a year."
Tish later tried to reach out and Brandi realized her mom had been blocked from Purcell’s Instagram. They assumed by his ex after he had reached out.
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During her break up, Tish said she was lamenting about being alone to a friend, who told her to just message Purcell again, and when she did, she saw she was unblocked.
The 56-year-old sent a message under the guise of talking about her production deal with NBCU, asking if he wanted to get together and talk about a show idea.
He responded quickly, agreeing to meet and noting he had "a crush" on her.
"So, we go to lunch and make out for like three hours," and within days they were saying "I love you," she said.
Brandi said her mom's marriage to Purcell has "done wonders for her confidence." (Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage)
Brandi said he’s "done wonders for her confidence" and Tish agreed.
"I am living my best life, and he is yummy!" she said, adding later, "There is not one second where I don’t feel loved by him."
Tish also openly smoked marijuana throughout the podcast, revealing she first tried the drug ten years ago during Miley’s Bangerz tour in 2014 after a tour bus she was on caught fire, leaving her with anxiety.
She said she felt weed was "the devil" and a "gateway" drug, but after struggling to sleep and not liking the effects of Ambien, Miley told her, "‘Mom, if you would just smoke weed,’ that’s how it started. I started smoking to go to sleep."
Brandi noted "the tables have really turned" because Miley is now sober, and Tish still indulges.
