“Southern Charm” star Olivia Flowers’ brother Conner Flowers’ cause of death has been revealed — and it had nothing to do with his Lyme disease.
The 32-year-old died on Jan. 30 of an accidental overdose of fentanyl, according to his sister and a coroner’s report obtained by People.
“My brother hated talking about his illness,” she told the magazine, referring to Conner’s yearslong battle with the illness.
“So many people, even in his close circle, didn’t know about his Lyme. So again, to hear he died of a fentanyl overdose, there’s immediately going to be this assumption that he was partying,” she added.
“Conner wasn’t like that. This was a relapse. This was his means to survive.”
Olivia explained that after her brother was prescribed medicine for his pain and anxiety, he began to become dependent on the drugs.
“He started depending, at a very young age, on this prescription medicine to feel normal,” she told People. “And we as a family started to see this toll it took on his body.”
After news of Conner’s death surfaced, Olivia revealed that he had suffered from Lyme disease for “his entire adult life.”
The Bravolebrity, 31, explained in May that Conner had “several misdiagnoses and unnecessary medicinal treatment at a young age,” which ultimately led to “severe internal damage” that was “long-lasting and devastating.”
The aftermath of Conner’s unexpected death has been playing out on the current season of the Bravo reality show, with Olivia even sharing one of the last things he said to her.
“[He] was like, ‘You’re doing everything right. You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be. And … I hope you can look at me and be proud of me like I’m proud of you,’” she tearfully said in a confessional.
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The emotional Oct. 19 episode also featured a FaceTime call between the brother and sister, during which they said they would see each other “soon” and that they loved each other.
“Everyone knows me as your sister. Like, everywhere I go they’re like, ‘Oh, you’re Conner’s sister,’” she told him.
Olivia later had a low-key girls’ night with her co-stars Venita Aspen and Leva Bonaparte and broke down over how she and her parents were on “really different pages” with their grief.
“My dad has just, like, not stopped working since he’s gotten here. He’s just, like, stayed on calls, whereas my mom, she’s like, ‘I don’t wanna leave here.’ She’s like, ‘I’m just gonna feel further away from him.’ … I haven’t been able to like go in his room, whereas my mom just wants to stay in it,” she said while crying.
The reality star gushed over how “thoughtful,” “sweet” and “kind” her brother was.
“That’s what everyone was saying about him. I just hope he knew, like, how loved he was. I just hope he knew that,” she said while hiding her tears.
Shortly after his death, Olivia posted a series of photos honoring Conner and wrote about “what a blessing” it was to “be the sister of such a beautiful, tender hearted soul.”
“He led every interaction with that big heart of his. Catching everyone’s eye with his fashion sense,” she wrote on Feb. 14. “I don’t know what this life will be without you. It’s always been us 4. I can only hope I continue to be known forever as ‘Conner’s little sister.'”
