Mama June responds to criticism of her social media use amid daughter’s cancer battle

Mama June Shannon is defending herself after commenters called her out for her use of social media amid her daughter Anna “Chickadee” Cardwell's cancer battle.

On Aug. 13, the 44-year-old reality television star posted a NSFW video on Instagram and TikTok of her pranking husband Justin Stroud.

One Instagram user said they disapproved of Shannon frequently sharing content on social media while Cardwell battles stage 4 adrenal carcinoma.

Shannon responded to the comment on Aug. 14, explaining that she uses social media as a “break from reality.”

“Well let me school you just a little bit, and Anna will even show you this for herself,” she began in her lengthy reply. “We speak almost on a daily basis.”

The “Mama June: Family Crisis” star continued, “This (has) all been hard on all of us and she knows that but if she was really bad off, I mean come on I have common sense we wouldn’t be going anywhere I would be right there like we always have every time that she had a chemo treatment.”

She said that she and her husband only live five minutes away from Cardwell and that they have been visiting her.

“Life doesn’t stop even though some days it feels like I’m living in a dream with all this,” Shannon wrote. “It’s a daily struggle for me (mentally) and (emotionally) to deal with and (sometimes) to get through the day but I have to.”

Shannon also pointed out that they cannot change her daughter’s cancer diagnosis.

She explained, “I needed a break from reality for a minute even though it’s in the front of my mind every second of every single day so me posting on social media doesn’t mean I don’t care or ain’t there for her during this.”

At the end of her response, she told the social media user, “Thanks for your optimism but until you walk a day in my shoes (you) or anyone (do not) have any idea what I deal with and struggle with.”

In a separate comment, she appeared to address the other harsh reactions to her post.

Shannon wrote, “I am so glad I could bring so much joy to everyone for the weekend. I hope y’all have (an) amazing week.”

In May, Shannon confirmed her 28-year-old daughter’s cancer battle during an interview with “Entertainment Tonight,” revealing the disease was “very rare and very aggressive.” Adrenal cancer affects healthy cells in the adrenal gland, making them mutate and grow out of control, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

At the time, Cardwell had recently undergone a second round of chemotherapy. Shannon shared that her daughter was sleeping often and lacked an appetite some days.

“There’s days where I don’t know (whether) to scream, get mad, or be happy,” Shannon said at the time. “As her mom, we’ve had talks you don’t want to have with your child. We know what the endgame is and we are prepared for that. You’re never prepared, but we know what could happen.”

Almost a week after Shannon’s interview, Cardwell shared a health update on her Instagram page.

She uploaded a silly selfie with her boyfriend, Eldridge Toney, and wrote “Well going on to round 3 of chemo.” Cardwell joked that the Cracker Barrel she ate was “good going down but not up.”

The former TLC reality star added, “But over all it’s going good and chemo is working we come to find so things are looking good.”

In July, Shannon told “Entertainment Tonight” that her daughter’s condition is “terminal” and said she completed four rounds of chemotherapy.

“She’s actually doing pretty good,” Shannon said. “She’s handling it pretty good.”

She said her daughter is figuring out the next steps in her treatment.

“She’s stage 4. She’s not gonna go into remission. We’ve all accepted that, so I just tell people one day at a time because you never know,” Shannon concluded.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com