Did Jenni Rivera Really Go to Rehab Like in 'Mariposa de Barrio'?

Telemundo's series Mariposa de Barrio, based on the life and autobiography of Diva de la Banda Jenni Rivera, is now available to stream in its 91-episode entirety on Netflix.

Jenni's bestselling autobiography, Unbreakable: My Story, My Way, was released posthumously following her untimely death in a plane crash in December 2012.

Both the book and the series follow Jenni from her youth toward her dream of musical fame, including parts of her life that have never been revealed to the public before.

For example, fans have noticed that an early Mariposa de Barrio episode shows a young Jenni in rehab. Keep reading to learn more about the time Jenni Rivera spent in a rehabilitation facility at the age of 16.

Indeed, just like the show depicts, a young Jenni Rivera hid out in a rehabilitation center when she was 16. The California native, whose real name is Dolores Janney Rivera Saavedra, explains in Unbreakable that she checked in to rehab after having attempted suicide. She writes that she took seven bottles of different pills and was found laying on the floor of the video store bathroom where she worked at the time.

The reason for her despair, the "No Llega el Olvido" artist wrote, was that she had gained nearly 50 lbs. during her pregnancy with daughter Janney, better known to the world as Chiquis. 

Jenni also explains that her morale was extremely low due to the fact that her ex-husband Trino, whom she married at 15, abused her physically and verbally.

While José Trinidad Marín, better known as Trino, and Jenni were only married for eight years until 1992, the effects of his abuse reverberated for long after their relationship ended.

Jenni's younger sister, Rosie Rivera, explained in her own 2019 book Take Your Power Back that she suffered traumatic abuse at Trino's hands — abuse she regrets not having spoken about earlier since it also ended up affecting her niece, Jenni's eldest daughter, Chiquis.

"When I started puberty, he began to take interest in me," Rosie revealed in an interview with Telemundo. "It's terrible and I didn't know that it happened to Chiquis until years later. Because I didn't talk, she suffered," she went on to say.

"I started to drink, to take drugs at 16, I never used protection when I had sexual relations," she continued. "I drank until I wouldn't remember because I felt so much guilt for what happened to Chiquis."

She went on to describe the close relationship she had with her late sister Jenni, who only found out about the abuse her ex-husband had been capable of later. Rosie says she always admired Jenni's strength, and found her own at 25, when she devoted her life to Christ.

These days, Rosie dedicates her time to spreading awareness about sexual abuse and is a spokesperson for its victims.

Stream Mariposa de Barrio to learn more about Jenni's too-short life, and the family she left behind.

If you need support, The National Sexual Assault Hotline is available 24/7 at 1-800-656-4673. You will be connected with a trained staff member in your area. Or visit RAINN.org to chat online with a support specialist at any time.