Lori Loughlin’s Daughters Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose Reportedly Struggling Amid Parents’ Prison Stints

As Lori Loughlin and her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, serve out their prison sentences for their roles in the college admissions scandal, daughters Olivia Jade Giannulli, 21, and Isabella Rose Giannulli, 22, are living a “nightmare,” a source close to the Full House actress told PEOPLE Monday.

“It’s just a nightmare for them,” the insider said. “They were very upset when they said goodbye to Lori. But to have both of their parents now in prison at the same time is very upsetting.” Olivia and Isabella, whom their parents attempted to have fraudulently admitted to the University of Southern California, are “beyond worried,” the source added. “They can’t wait to have their mom home in December, though. They try to focus on this.”

On Oct. 30, the When Calls the Heart actress reported to FCI-Dublin in Northern California to serve a two-month sentence after pleading guilty back in May to conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. She is also required to pay a fine of $150,000 and complete 100 hours of community service upon release. Then, on Nov. 19, Giannulli was booked into federal prison in Lompoc, California where he’s serving five months on two fraud charges. He is also required to pay a $250,000 fine and perform 250 hours of community service after his release.

Despite COVID-19 safety procedures preventing visits to the prison, a legal source told PEOPLE that Loughlin was doing well as she prepared for her December release. “She was a little weepy on her first night there, but she pulled herself together quickly. She hasn’t had any specific problems. No one is bullying her,” they said. While Loughlin is scheduled to be released on Dec. 28, she could be home for Christmas due to weekend and holiday procedures in the department of corrections.

During Loughlin’s August sentencing, she told the court she had made an “awful decision” to give her daughters an “unfair advantage” in their admission to college. “In doing so, ignored my intuition and allowed myself to be swayed from my moral compass,” she said at the time in a statement after pleading guilty. “I thought I was acting out of love for my children, but in reality, I had only undermined and diminished my daughters’ abilities and accomplishments.” The actress added she would “go back and do things differently” if it was possible but would now “take responsibility and move forward.”