Marie Osmond: My Son's in Rehab

"Dancing with the Stars" favorite reveals 16-year-old son entered treatment last week

By Marcus Errico Nov 14, 2007 11:23 PMTags

In the last few weeks, Marie Osmond passed out on live television during Dancing with the Stars and mourned the death of her father. Now she is facing her most difficult crisis yet.

The singer confirmed Wednesday that her 16-year-old son, Michael, entered rehab last week for undisclosed treatment.

"My son Michael is an amazing young man, shown through his courage in facing his issues. As his mother, I couldn't be more proud of him," she said in a statement. "The press and public have always been kind and gracious in the past, and I know they will continue to respect our privacy during this time."

Osmond first revealed her son's struggles during a taped segment for CNN's Larry King Live, which is scheduled to air Wednesday night.

The 48-year-old singer is expected to continue on Dancing with the Stars next Monday.

Michael is one of seven children (five, including Michael, are adopted) Osmond has with her ex-husband, music producer Brian Blosil. The couple divorced in April, after 20 years of marriage.

Osmond's disclosure comes a week after she flew to Utah to be with her family following the death of 90-year-old family patriarch George. The extended family, 100 members in all, appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show last Friday in tribute to the elder Osmond.

During their appearance, Marie addressed her family ties.

"I did [Dancing with the Stars] initially for my kids," she said of her still-going reality-show stint. "But for women who find themselves like me, a single mom, you know, at 48...life is not over. I would rather climb a mountain than crawl in a hole."

The asthma-suffering songbird, who performed her 1970s county hit "Paper Roses" and dueted with brother Donny on their TV theme song, also chalked up last month's fainting spell, witnessed by about 20 million viewers, to the California wildfires.

But Osmond's troubles aren't all of recent vintage.

In August 2006, she shot down tabloid reports of a suicide attempt after she was hospitalized for several days in Utah. "She bascially had an adverse reaction to some medication she was taking, and she blacked out," Osmond's publicist said at the time.

In 1999, Osmond admitted to having struggled emotionally following the birth of son Matthew. She chronicled her difficulties in her 2001 memoir, Behind the Smile: My Journey out of Postpartum Depression.

Osmond's first marriage, to former BYU basketball player Stephen Craig, ended in divorce in 1985. The couple had one son, Stephen, now 24.

She wed Blosil the following year.