Anna Marie Tendler Opens up About ‘Mental Health Breakdown,’ Hospitalization Following John Mulaney Divorce

Anna Marie Tendler is opening up about the role her beloved dog Petunia played in helping her move on from her public split from ex-husband John Mulaney. The artist and author paid tribute to the late French bulldog, who had to be put down in April due to health issues, in an emotional essay for Elle published Tuesday. 

“Petunia and I moved to Connecticut in December 2020, in the wake of my severe mental health breakdown and what appeared to be the impending end of my marriage,” Tendler wrote. “We fused even more deeply together in an attuned and totally symbiotic relationship.” Tendler continued that while Petunia had a tendency throughout her life towards “resource guarding,” causing her to growl over toys and other items that ended up on the floor, she changed her ways amid Tendler’s traumatic experience.

“She never let me out of her sight. In fact, she watched me intently, as if I was the thing she now needed to guard, though, where guarding once incited her primal rage, she would now guard me with the deepest kind of love I had ever known,” the 37-year-old recalled. With her marriage coming to an end, Tendler wrote that her “mental health hinged wholly on my dog.”

When Tendler was hospitalized for “depression, self-harm, and severe suicidal ideation” in the first two weeks of 2021, doctors asked her to make a list of her reasons for living. “Petunia was the one and only thing on that list,” she revealed. “When I returned home, it was as if Petunia knew this and took her job very seriously.” Petunia “mellowed, almost overnight” and stopped resource guarding almost entirely.

“She sat at my feet at every meal. She followed me around my property without a leash, never straying more than 20 feet and always galloping back to me when she did,” Tendler continued. “Petunia became an entirely new version of herself.” So when Petunia’s life was coming to an end, Tendler made sure to show the same love and loyalty. 

“She took her last breaths while cradled in my arms. Even after life had left her body, I sat with her, held her, and continued to talk to her. I told her how much I love her. I told her how grateful I was for her love and companionship. I promised her that I was okay and that I would be okay without her; crushed, lonely, but okay,” Tendler shared. “I thanked her for staying with me – for guarding me -until I was strong enough to survive without her.”

Tendler confirmed in May 2021 that she and Mulaney had split after six years of marriage following the comedian’s 60-day stay in rehab in December 2020. Soon after Tendler’s announcement, in which she described herself as “heartbroken” by Mulaney’s decision to end their marriage, the Baby J star confirmed that he and actress Olivia Munn were expecting a child. The two now share a 1-year-old son, Malcolm.