Though it may look on the surface like Heather Rae El Moussa’s life is easy-breezy, the HGTV star shared a vulnerable story on January 7, 2025, to let fans know she has hard days, too.
Heather, who got her TV start on Netflix’s “Selling Sunset,” is married to her “Flipping El Moussas” co-star Tarek El Moussa and will soon appear on “The Flip-Off” with him and his first wife, HGTV personality Christina Haack. While juggling her shows and real estate career, she’s also a “bonus mom” to their two kids — Taylor, 14, and Brayden, 10 — and shares son Tristan, almost 2, with Tarek.
“Some days,” she shared in her Instagram Stories after a particularly difficult morning, “are harder than others for ALL of us. No matter how put together someone looks or seems we all have days where we just don’t feel our best. Today was one of those days for me.”
Heather Rae El Moussa Says She Woke Up Feeling ‘Suffocated’ by Stress
Continuing her Instagram Story, written in white text on a black background, Heather wrote, “I woke up frustrated about a few things going on in my life and I use the word ‘suffocated’ to Tarek because that’s how I was feeling this morning.”
“A few things that make me feel better and get into a better headspace is talking about it with people that support me, love me and understand who I am,” Heather shared. “Also, taking 10 minutes to meditate puts me in a better place.”
Heather also praised the relationship she has with Tarek, whom she married in 2021, by sharing, “I am so thankful to my husband because on his tough days I pick him up on my tough days He picks me up and that’s what partners are for.”
“So I’m writing this just to let you know that if you are having a rough day and you feel like you can’t get out of it,” Heather concluded, “you can and I’m sending so much love to you. ❤️”
Heather Rae El Moussa Has Shared Previous Stressors & Medical Challenges
This is not the first time Heather has opened up about dealing with challenges, including dealing with unkind comments from social media users. After Tristan’s birth in January 2023, she vulnerably shared his struggles with breastfeeding, eventually resulting in a procedure for tongue-tie.
In October of that year, she told Today.com that she’d been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called Hashimoto’s disease, triggered by her pregnancy, that caused a multitude of symptoms including extreme exhaustion to a drastic drop in her milk supply.
“I remember saying to my assistant, ‘I feel like I’m dead,” she recalled. “My brain was so tired, my body was so tired. I was exhausted all the time and no amount of sleep could make it better. Filming was absolutely brutal because I could barely get out of bed.”
Hashimoto’s disease is an autoimmune disorder that affects the thyroid gland, according to Mayo Clinic, which is “a butterfly-shaped gland located at the base of the neck just below the Adam’s apple” and is responsible for producing “hormones that help regulate many functions in the body.” Researchers say there’s also a likely correlation between stress and an uptick in symptoms.
Since starting a prescription medication for Hashimoto’s, which Mayo Clinic said is typically treated with a synthetic hormone called levothyroxine, Heather told Today she was “feeling much better.”
That December, she shared a video showing the physical transformation she was proud of achieving after her diagnosis and the stress of new motherhood.
“So much can happen and change within a year,” she wrote, “so if you’re seeing this, keep going, keep pushing, believe in yourself, but also give yourself time and give yourself grace 🤍”
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HGTV Star Vulnerably Admits to Feeling ‘Suffocated’ by Stress