The Mel Robbins Podcast

I Didn’t Expect to Record This: I Want to Talk to You About tWitch’s Death | The Mel Robbins Podcast

Order your copy of The Let Them Theory 👉 https://melrob.co/let-them-theory 👈 The #1 Best Selling Book of 2025 🔥 Discover how much power you truly have. It all begins with two simple words. Let Them. — I’m checking in on you and me. There's a lot going on in the world right now, and I am still reeling from the news that Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss died from suicide. If you had to ask me to list the 5 most positive people on the planet, The Rock would be #1, and tWitch would be #2. Having lost too many friends and people I love to mental health challenges like depression, addiction, trauma, and hopelessness – all of who died from suicide – I’m just so heavy with emotion. tWitch was beloved by millions for being Ellen DeGeneres’ executive producer, dance partner, and DJ on her talk show. He was a part of people’s lives 5 days a week, for years. He competed on So You Think You Can Dance and he had one of those million-dollar smiles that just lit up every room he walked into. He is followed by millions of people online who love the adorable dances that he, his wife Allison, and his 3 kids do. Seeing such a bright light like tWitch go out so suddenly at the age of 40, with 3 beautiful kids, a huge life, and adoring fans around the world… It just stirred up so much sadness inside of me, and this may be stirring up a lot inside of you. You don’t have to know tWitch personally (I didn’t – I am just a fan) to be profoundly impacted by the news of his death. This may be bringing up experiences of loss from your own life. It may also be reminding you of moments when you were really struggling, which is another reason why I felt the urgency to talk to you today. And I thought, maybe you’re sad too. Or having a hard time processing how someone who seemed to “have it all” and “so much talent” could come to a point where this could happen. Or maybe you are going through a tough time yourself. Or maybe you just need a friend to tell you it’s going to be okay and give you a boost. So I wanted to connect. I decided to roll out of bed, get right on the mic, and share what I'm feeling and how I'm thinking about tWitch's death so we can process this together. Please take 14 minutes to listen to this powerful message. I share my thoughts about how to process news like this and I also emphasize something tWitch always said: Be kind. Today, be kind. You never know what another person is going through, so be kind. And always, be kind to yourself. One thing you can do today is reach out to people you love. You never know what it’s going to mean to someone. If you don’t know what to say, you can share this episode. And, if you are in pain right now. PLEASE. There’s a difference between wanting to end the pain you feel, and wanting to end your life. You can end the pain with support and by taking small steps forward every single day. It can and it will get better. Please, if you need help, pick up the phone. You deserve support. Trained volunteers are standing by to help you. Call the National Suicide Hotline, which is 988 in the US. Different languages are available – click here 👉 https://www.therapyroute.com/article/helplines-suicide-hotlines-and-crisis-lines-from-around-the-world Or, text HOME to 741-741 for the Crisis Text Line. Thanks for reading this and listening to this episode. And I just wanted to end by saying, I love you and it means more than you know that you are here. — Follow Mel: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melrobbins/ TikTok: http://tiktok.com/@melrobbins Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melrobbins LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melrobbins Website: http://melrobbins.com — Sign up for Mel’s newsletter: https://melrob.co/sign-up-newsletter A note from Mel to you, twice a week, sharing simple, practical ways to build the life you want. — Subscribe to Mel’s channel here: https://www.youtube.com/melrobbins?sub_confirmation=1 — Listen to The Mel Robbins Podcast 🎧 New episodes drop every Monday & Thursday! https://melrob.co/spotify https://melrob.co/applepodcasts https://melrob.co/amazonmusic — Looking for Mel’s books on Amazon? Find them here: The Let Them Theory: https://amzn.to/3IQ21Oe The Let Them Theory Audiobook: https://amzn.to/413SObp The High 5 Habit: https://amzn.to/3fMvfPQ The 5 Second Rule: https://amzn.to/4l54fah

Mel Robbinshost

Dec 14, 202216mWatch on YouTube ↗

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Mel Robbins Processes tWitch’s Death, Suicide, Grief, And Radical Compassion

Mel Robbins records an unscripted, emotional episode responding to the news of Stephen “tWitch” Boss’s death by suicide and the 10th anniversary of Sandy Hook, using it as a moment to check in on listeners’ emotional wellbeing.
She reframes suicide as “dying from” a mental health condition, comparing it to brain cancer to remove stigma, blame, and the idea that it’s a rational, selfish choice.
Robbins explores how public tragedies trigger personal grief, emphasizes that we never truly know others’ inner pain, and urges radical kindness toward others and ourselves.
She closes by speaking directly to listeners in dark places, insisting that pain is treatable, support is available, and their lives are worth fighting for.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Use compassionate, accurate language for suicide.

Saying someone “died from suicide” or “died from mental health struggles” frames it like a disease (e.g., brain cancer), reducing shame and judgment and recognizing real brain deterioration.

Assume everyone is silently battling something.

Outward markers—smiles, success, family, money—don’t reveal someone’s mental state; people live inside their heads, so don’t presume to know their pain and default to kindness instead.

Let yourself feel and process grief triggered by news events.

Public losses can reopen personal wounds; noticing this, remembering those you’ve lost, and talking with others about it are healthy ways to process rather than suppress the pain.

Be intentionally kind to yourself when the world feels heavy.

On emotionally loaded days, it’s important to rest, move your body, reach out to friends, and give yourself permission to do less—all as acts of self‑compassion, not weakness.

Drop moral judgment about those who die from suicide.

Calling suicide “selfish” ignores how far brain functioning has eroded; by the time someone can’t distinguish ending pain from ending life, they’re no longer thinking clearly or rationally.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

People don’t live at their house. You know where everybody lives? They live inside their heads.

— Mel Robbins

I think about a death from mental health struggles the same way I think about a death from cancer.

— Mel Robbins

When somebody gets to the point where they can’t think clearly, it means the physical structure of their brain has deteriorated from the mental health battle.

— Mel Robbins

You don’t need to know somebody personally to be affected personally by the news of their death.

— Mel Robbins

Please, please, please get support for the pain that you’re feeling and hold on to the life that you have, because your life is worth fighting for.

— Mel Robbins

Reaction to Stephen “tWitch” Boss’s death and why it feels so shockingLanguage and stigma around suicide and mental health (“died from suicide”)How public tragedies retrigger personal grief and past lossesThe unseen inner battles people face despite outward success or positivityThe moral and practical importance of kindness toward othersSelf‑kindness, self‑care, and proactively reaching out for supportA compassionate, medicalized view of severe mental health struggles

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