Filipino TV host Kim Atienza shared that he and his wife knew that something was about to happen to their daughter, social media influencer Emman Atienza, two days before her death.
The Tiktok sensation passed away on 22 October at the age of 19. She was found unresponsive at her Los Angeles residence. News outlets reported that the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office declared the cause of death as suicide.
In an interview with the local TV show 'Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho,' Kim told host Jessica Soho that his wife, Feli, received a call from Emman, saying that something was wrong.
'[Emman] said, 'Mom, I'm in an emergency right now, but worry not, there's no self-harm. But I need to go to a therapy centre,' Kim said.
When they tried to reach out to Emman, she did not answer any of their calls. The next day, Feli texted him to say that she had 'terrible, terrible news,' and he knew right away that they had already lost their youngest child.
Kim recalled that he fell to his knees and felt numb when he received the message, and he immediately called his wife, who was in Florida at that time. When she said that Emman was gone, he felt numb and questioned God why it had happened to their daughter.
Struggle With Mental Health Issues
Emman, the youngest among the three children of Kim and Taiwanese businesswoman Feli, was very vocal about her mental health problems.
The TikTok star constantly talked about being bipolar and having post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) when she was 12 years old.
During an interview in November 2024, Emman opened up about the verbal and physical abuse she experienced at the hands of her nanny when she was younger.
The nanny used to call her 'stupid' and 'useless' at that time, and locked her in closed spaces with a toy that was used to scare her if she cried or did something wrong. Both her parents were busy at work when the abuses happened.
There were also instances when the nanny hit her and made her watch adult entertainment. She never told her parents at that time because she thought that it was normal.
She also experienced bullying in class and online.
In an Instagram carousel posted in January, she admitted that she tried to self-harm after two years of being sober. She recalled all the challenges she experienced during the previous year, such as lying to her therapist to avoid their disappointment and being drugged and sexually abused.
She went to therapy in Los Angeles to address her mental health issues, but she was not very optimistic that she would get better after her treatment.
Her Father's Realisations
Despite the pain of losing his child, Kim said he is at peace knowing that Emman's death is not in vain.
'We know that Emman is sick and she had a few attempts in the past, and my prayer to the Lord was for this to not happen, for Emman to be safe, for Emman to be happy, for Emman to heal, yet this happened,' he said.
'I know that nothing can happen as an accident. I know that things work out well. I know that this is planned by the Lord. This is not in vain. Emman did not die in vain.'
Emman has been cremated in the US. Her remains were brought home to the Philippines by Kim and Feli.
