Mariah Carey is going through a heartbreaking time after the deaths of her mother, Patricia, and sister, Alison, but loved ones — including ex-husband Nick Cannon — are stepping in to help in her darkest hour.
Last month, the "Hero" singer, 55, revealed that Patricia, 87, and Alison, 62, both died on the same day — and though they were family, Mariah has had a complicated relationship with each of them through the years.
"Mariah was very close to her mother [in recent years], and she was really able to be there for her at the end of her life. As painful as it is, there was a sense of closure," a source exclusively tells Life & Style .
However, when it comes to Alison — who struggled with drug addiction and hit Mariah with a still-pending $1.25 million lawsuit after her 2020 memoir — they hadn't "seen each other in decades ," the insider explains.
Who Is Mariah Carey's Mother? Meet Estranged Late Mom Patricia Carey "They had a very complicated relationship, and in some ways that makes this loss even harder because a lot of feelings have come up that Mariah wasn't expecting," the source continues. "She's grieving in her own public way, but all this talk about how she didn't see her for years is not helping."
Adds the source, "Everyone's focused on how guilty she should feel , but the reality is there's just a tremendous amount of sorrow over what might have been if her sister hadn't gotten addicted to drugs."
Thankfully, the "All I Want for Christmas Is You" singer has a close-knit circle of family and friends holding her up in her time of need — including ex Nick, 43, who is the father of her 13-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan.
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"Nick knows what a struggle it was for her to walk away from the relationship with her sister and do the tough-love thing, and he knows how much she relied on her mother, so he rushed in to offer his support," the insider reveals. "He's been offering to help in any way he can and calling every day to check on her. She's forever grateful for how he's stepped up."
Life & Style sources add that the recent tragedy could even lead to a second shot at love for Mariah and Nick, who split in December 2014 before their divorce was made final in 2016.
"He may joke about them getting back together, and although it's not a very likely scenario, a lot of people in Mariah's life think she should consider it," a source says. "After all, they're very compatible and still have a very loving relationship. They think she could do a lot worse than taking him back."
Who Is Mariah Carey's Sister Alison? They Had a Complicated Relationship Earlier this week, Mariah spoke out following the recent deaths of her mom and sister, sharing an Instagram post on Sunday, September 8, that featured a video of her rehearsing ahead of her upcoming shows in China and Brazil.
In the clip, she performed a slow, stripped-down version of her 2005 track "It's Like That" before telling fans, "We'll see you soon, China."
In the caption, she wrote that she was "back at work," adding, "It's been a couple of rough weeks, but I appreciate everyone's love and support so much and I can't wait to see my fans in China & Brazil. Love you!"