Hayden Panettiere Gives Emotional First Interview About Her Brother's Sudden Death: 'My Heart Will Always Be Broken' (Exclusive)

 Hayden Panettiere’s Road to Healing After Brother’s Sudden Death: A Heartbreaking Journey to Recovery

Hayden Panettiere (L) and Jansen Panettiere. Photo: 

Amanda Edwards/Getty 

2023 was supposed to be a comeback year for actress Hayden Panettiere.

After years of battling addiction, the *Amber Alert* star had found sobriety in early 2020 after completing rehab. She was newly single, having left a tumultuous relationship, and was thrilled to be back in front of the camera for *Scream 6*. But just weeks before the film's February 2023 premiere, tragedy struck: Panettiere’s beloved younger brother, Jansen, passed away suddenly from an undiagnosed heart condition at the age of 28, shattering her world.

FOR MORE NEWS: CLICK HARE

“He was my only sibling, and it was my job to protect him,” Panettiere shares in her first interview since his passing, featured on this week’s cover of PEOPLE. “Losing him felt like losing half of my soul.”

Overwhelmed by grief, Panettiere, 35, found herself unable to leave her home, especially as she became a target for paparazzi in the wake of Jansen’s death. “I had to see horrific pictures of myself coming out of his funeral, and it was devastating,” she reveals. “My agoraphobia, something I’d struggled with before, came back full force.”

The emotional toll also took a physical turn; Panettiere experienced rapid weight gain, which only deepened her struggles. “The stress and cortisol in my body caused me to balloon,” she says. “It wrecked my self-esteem. I didn’t feel confident to even leave the house, but I knew staying in was a vicious cycle.”

In the midst of her grief, Panettiere found a lifeline through fitness, thanks to her publicist who connected her with personal trainer Marnie Alton. Slowly, Panettiere began to train, finding solace in the long walks and conversations she shared with Alton, who became not just a trainer but a trusted confidante.

“These long, beautiful walks felt like therapy,” Panettiere says. “Marnie empowered me.” As she worked on her physical health, her mental state began to improve too. “Working out helped me release stress and the unrealistic expectations I’d always placed on myself.”

Though Panettiere continues to grapple with her loss, she has found a new perspective on life. “When something so catastrophic happens, it changes you. The little things don’t upset me as much anymore,” she reflects. 

Panettiere is now looking ahead, with her new film *Amber Alert* set to release on September 27. Though she’s thankful to be feeling more like herself each day, she acknowledges that some wounds may never fully heal. “I will always be heartbroken,” she says. “No matter how many years pass, I will never get over his loss.”