Home Scandal and Gossip Influencer with 4.2m followers, 31, commits suicide: how fame killed her

Influencer with 4.2m followers, 31, commits suicide: how fame killed her

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Niece Waidhofer
Niece Waidhofer Instagram influencer suicide amid mental health issues. Image via social media.
Niece Waidhofer
Niece Waidhofer Instagram influencer suicide amid mental health issues. Image via social media.

Niece Waidhofer Instagram influencer kills self amid mental health issues. How the very thing that defined & epitomized her, was also her downfall. 

A Houston Instagram influencer who used her platform of more than 4.2 million followers to create awareness on mental health issues has died after taking her own life.

Niece Waidhofer, 31, who also worked as a model was found dead in her home just outside Houston last month, after a concerned family member called for a welfare check on the star. 

Public records indicate the social media star, who also had a successful career as a model, died on May 14.

Waidhofer – who had amassed 4.2 million followers on Instagram – regularly posted reels and other content where she openly discussed her mental health struggles.

Family told TMZ that the influencer – who rose to fame in 2015 after starting the popular ‘Roast Me’ trend on Reddit – took her own life as a result of struggles with her mental health.

She was discovered dead at her mansion in Katy, a small city just outside Houston. 

The cause of death was not specified.

‘Sadly, Niece took her own life after a long battle with mental health issues,’ a relative told TMZ.

Adding: ‘She was very open with her followers about her struggles, even wanting to help followers who also suffered.’

While adding, that Waidhofer was ‘more than her struggles.’

Early last month, Waidhofer – who was single and had no children- erased her social media of nearly all her photos and videos, leaving only three posts behind.

The move raised some concerns from her fanbase, with rumors swirling on Reddit as early as last month that she had taken her life.  

‘RIP to Niece The strong ones who offer to help and advise also need help and advice. Life is happening to everyone. Rest In Peace,’ one user wrote in one post on May 28 that shared one of the star’s remaining photos – a selfie taken in March.

‘It appears she passed away,’ the user wrote. ‘My condolences to her family & friends, she will be missed. Her last Instagram pic as a tribute to her.’

Her last post was a selfie taken in a car, and was uploaded on March 25.

The other posts included a short clip of her dancing with her dog, Puff – who has since died – and a 2015 photo of her and an an unnamed man announcing their engagement.

‘From our very first date, I knew this was the man I want to spend the rest of my life with,’ Waidhofer captioned the post.

‘Even still, there is nothing that could have prepared me for the elation I felt when he asked me to be his wife. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Niece Waidhofer (@niecewaidhofer)

‘My love, you are all I will ever want. I will love you with my entire heart until I take my last breath. Always<3’

Those marriage plans never materialized, however – with Waidhofer reportedly single at the time of her death.

A few months ago, Waidhofer posted an apology video admitting she edited some of her photos to appear skinnier and more curvy –  vowing to stop the practice because she didn’t want to perpetuate stereotypical unattainable beauty standards.

Waidhofer – who rose to fame by creating the Roast Me internet campaign, after she posted a photo of herself asking internet users to poke fun of her – was often subjected to toxic, disparaging comments in her posts.

She is survived by her mother, Martha, and younger brother William Jr, 27.

And then there were these comments on social media that caught this author’s attention. See what you think?

‘I’ve always said that the image a lot of these “influencers” portray on social media is false bravado. People who constantly post pictures and videos of themselves are clearly insecure and need constant attention and validation. That’s not the sign of a mentally healthy, well-adjusted person. The praise clearly wasn’t enough for this young woman. There was a void and emptiness in her life that no amount of likes could fill. RIP.’

‘4.2 million followers does not equal 1 good friend to talk with. Social media is not a solution. In many cases it is part of the problem. RIP.’

‘Mental illness requires help, not adoring fans or enablers.’

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