Like most mothers, Janis Winehouse wants her daughter to be healthy and safe. Unlike most mothers, she's letting daughter Amy know by penning an open letter to a British tabloid.
"This letter is my way of making sure that you know that all you have to do is come to us, Amy, and we'll do everything in our power to get you well again," she wrote in Sunday's News of the World.
The elder Winehouse sought to reach out to the "Rehab" singer in the wake of increasingly distressing paparazzi shots, saying it was a last-ditch effort to get through to her daughter.
"I know there's no point in me ringing you, fussing over you or ordering you to do something. I need you to take that first step, darling. I need you to call me, to pick up that phone and tell me what's troubling you.
"Your father and I would like nothing more—wherever you are, whatever you need, we're here for you day and night. I hope you know that. We were terrified after we saw those pictures of you earlier this week, wandering the freezing streets of London in your underwear. All I wanted to do was rush into those pictures and wrap you up in a big, warm blanket."
A week ago, photos surfaced of the 24-year-old in nothing but a bra and jeans, wandering on the street outside her home at 5:45 in the morning. Her rep quickly dismissed reports of an all-night bender, saying the singer simply heard a noise and went to investigate.
Throughout the week, more early-morning photos surfaced, depicting the newly minted Grammy nominee making convenience store snack runs, accepting visits from Pete Doherty and walking down the street with what appeared to be white powder remnants around her nose.
"We are concerned, but not panicking," Janis wrote. "You've got to see things in your own time and I'm sure you will."
The Winehouse mum said she piles "hope upon hope" that her daughter will come for an extended visit, enjoy some "wholesome home cooking" and emerge a "fitter and stronger" person.
She implored her daughter to remember that she "just an ordinary human being...young and vulnerable" and blames circumstances, not her daughter, for Amy's recent troubles.
"Early fame has overwhelmed you, it's dizzied you and muddled your mind...You think you're strong enough to get through this on your own, darling, but you're not."
Janis Winehouse did not place blame on her daughter's issues on husband Blake Fielder-Civil, who has been behind bars since last month for alleged witness tampering in his own assault case.
Although the elder Winehouse has not exactly been a cheerleader for her son-in-law, she said she supports her daughter's feelings.
"Blake, your husband, might not be my favorite person—you know that, Amy—but he's your choice and I would never say anything about him to hurt you...But I want you to love Blake for who he is, Amy. Not because you feel sorry for him, or because he can get you doped up. Not for any other reason than that you have respect for him.
"I completely understand and sympathize with how you feel heartbroken over your separation and I'd do anything to help you end that unhappiness. No mother likes to see her child suffering like that."
Last month Amy Winehouse scuttled her already long-delayed U.K. tour, writing on her Website, "I can't give it my all onstage without my Blake...My husband is everything to me and without him it's just not the same."
The cancellation came after a series of disastrous gigs, wherein Winehouse slurred her way through songs, repeatedly dropped microphones and was booed by her own audience for what were apparently deemed less than fully heartfelt performances.
"Me and your father, and your brother Alex all want you to be happy and quickly restored to full health," Janis wrote. "For the moment, that's all of our priorities."
"You are a brilliant talent, of course, and if you get yourself well, you'll be able to get on and fulfill your destiny."
There's no denying Amy Winehouse is poised for superstardom. Last Thursday, she took home six Grammy nominations, including an Album of the Year nod for the multiplatinum Back to Black—behind only to Kanye West in total nods.
And Janis Winehouse doesn't want her daughter to jeopardize her career or, more important, her life.
"You know I'm an optimist, and that I think, with our help, you will get back on top of things. But I know you must come to me first for that to happen. I just hope that, because of this letter, you do. Pick up the phone."
Winehouse's rep, meanwhile, told People that the singer is currently in a program being supervised by doctors and is "determined to be ready and well" for her Grammys performance.