Kathy Griffin’s tribute for her mother’s 99th birthday came with a painful reveal about her health.
The comedian took to Twitter Monday to honor Maggie’s special occasion with a touching photo, but revealing the sad news about her dementia getting worse.
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“Today is my mother Maggie’s 99th Birthday. I spoke with her yesterday and, unfortunately, I’m sorry to say her dementia is worsening,” Kathy captioned a photo of her and her mom on the red carpet at the 62nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards in 2010. “Here’s a fun picture to celebrate happier times.”
Fans of the former reality TV personality responded to the birthday note with well wishes.
“Pouring a box of wine in Maggie’s honor! Thanks for sharing her with us,” one fan responded.
“I hope so much that Maggie knows how deeply loved she is. Thank you, Kathy, for sharing her with us – we’ve grown to love her so much,” Another user wrote.
“Love to you both,” another fan commented. “Dementia sucks so much. I’m sorry the two of you are having to walk this path. And grateful that you’ve shared her light with us. Just seeing her face makes me smile.”
Maggie became a beloved part of Kathy’s Bravo reality series, My Life on the D-List from 3005 to 2010. The comedian first reveled the news about Maggie’s condition in a lengthy note on social media in January.
“As heartbreaking as this is, I feel the need to share some important info about my mom Maggie. I’ve always been honest with you all, but this one is really hard. The pic below, taken in September, was the last time I was able to have a proper/coherent conversation with her,” she wrote. “Since that photo was taken, she has rapidly fallen into the throes of dementia. This is never easy for any child, I know this is a reality that millions of people deal with every year. But when it comes to my mom this is particularly hard because her sharp mind was everything.”
At the time, Griffin revealed her mother is in “the best” 24-hour care and she is not in pain.
“In terms of how she is now, at this point she only knows my name and I love you. I know many of you know what that reality is like… I’m still grappling with it,” the comedian added.
“Up until this past couple years she was so sharp she always kept me on my toes,” Kathy continued. “Her mind was so naturally quick, funny, and smart. No one could get anything past her. Watching that slip away so fast has been devastating.”
Griffin’s family has been impacted by health issues in the past. Her older siblings Gary and Joyce both died of cancer, in 2014 and 2017 respectively.
