Lisa Rinna Opens Up on Postpartum Depression Nightmare: Kill Threats & Hallucinations
Brace yourselves—celebrity vulnerability is about to get real. Lisa Rinna, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum turned podcast host, laid bare a shocking chapter of her life on the April 18 episode of Let’s Not Talk About the Husband. Spoiler alert: it involves postpartum depression so severe she threatened to kill Harry Hamlin, her 73‑year‑old husband of 30 years. And yes, it’s as dramatic as it sounds.
Rinna, 61, candidly admitted, “I was out of my mind,” referring to her postpartum depression after welcoming daughter Amelia Gray in 2001. She confessed she had no clue what postpartum depression looked or felt like the first time around. According to Hamlin, this is far from rare; he pointed out that his sister‑in‑law and cousin also battled the condition after childbirth (People). But Rinna’s case took a terrifying twist: during one trip to a movie theater in Bracebridge, Ontario, she allegedly snapped and whispered, “I’m gonna kill you,” before advising Harry to “keep the knives in a drawer.” That set off immediate alarm bells.
“I was having these horrible visions—hallucinations of killing people, driving a car into a brick wall,” Rinna clarified, stressing that her darkest thoughts never targeted her child. “It wasn’t about that. It was about hopelessness, darkest depression.” True to dramatic form, Hamlin insisted she call her OB‑GYN—identified only as “Howie”—on the spot. Within days, Rinna was on antidepressants; it took roughly three weeks for the meds to kick in and lift the fog (People). The Cleveland Clinic defines postpartum depression as “a type of depression that happens after you give birth,” affecting birth mothers, surrogates and adoptive parents alike. Rinna fits the textbook definition, with intrusive thoughts and severe anxiety clouding her new‑mom experience.
Contrast that with her first pregnancy in 1998: no hallucinations, no kill threats—just garden‑variety baby bliss, apparently. “I was just absolutely hopeless,” she reflected, calling her state “completely psychotic” in hindsight. It’s a stark reminder that mental health doesn’t follow a predictable script. Rinna’s transparency is a rare win for public conversations around postpartum depression. Yet true to her dramatic instincts, she turned personal agony into a near‑tabloid moment—complete with knives and cinematic visions of crash landings.
So is this a groundbreaking break of silence or just another celebrity “tell‑all”? Either way, Rinna’s brutal honesty is fueling important discussions about postpartum depression (People; Cleveland Clinic). And before you click away, remember: next week’s podcast promises more eyebrow‑raising confessions. Stay tuned—this family’s saga isn’t wrapping up anytime soon.
And that’s today’s dose of reality. You’re welcome.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and People Magazine, Cleveland Clinic
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
