Amy Andrews, who returned to work at WJBK-TV (Fox 2 Detroit) this week after an extended absence for health issues, is letting viewers know how grateful she is for their support.

“I’ve always worn my heart on my sleeve and have been honest with you all, because you truly feel like family and are a big part of my support system,” the morning anchor posted on Instagram Wednesday, Sept. 24, to her more than 40,000 followers. “With that said, I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the thousands of encouraging messages, emails, comments, cards, letters and the food, flowers and visits.”

Andrews was back on the air Monday, Sept. 22, anchoring “Fox 2 News Mornings” with her colleague, Josh Landon. In her posting two days later, she asked viewers to bear with her as she again got used to the studio lights and on-air duties.

As her post elaborated, she has been experiencing symptoms like “extreme dizziness, balance issues, brain fog and blurred vision.”

Andrews has chronicled some of what she has been going through on social media. On July 16, she posted a thank-you to those who had reached out to her because she was off the air and “suffering some physical health issues.”

Two weeks later, on July 31, she wrote to thank staffers at the Michigan Institute for Neurological Disorders (which has several locations in metro Detroit) for taking “amazing” care of her. She shared good news on Aug. 10, writing, “My neurologist was able to rule out what would’ve been a devastating diagnosis! … However, that means I move on to different specialists and different tests until we figure this out.”

Andrews has communicated openly about her medical challenges in the past and has been an advocate for mental health awareness. Through social media, she revealed in 2022 and 2024 that she had taken medical leaves to deal with depression and anxiety.

In 2021, Andrews posted a photo of herself in a hospital bed in what is now Royal Oak’s Corewell Hospital, where she underwent back surgery to remove herniated disc fragments in her lower back. She got injured when her foot hit a rock while she was running on the beach during a vacation in Florida.

In a story about her Sept. 22 on-air return, Fox 2 Detroit said the news team’s Weather Authority meteorologist Derek Kevra spoke for the entire station when he said: “Some Mondays are hard to wake up and come to work. But when Amy’s here it makes it a little easier doesn’t it? It is a much better Monday here.”

Andrews is an alum of Indiana University, Oakland University and the Specs Howard School of Media Arts. She worked at TV stations in Colorado, Nevada, California and the Flint and Saginaw market before joining Fox 2 Detroit in 2011.

Contact Detroit Free Press pop culture critic Julie Hinds at [email protected].