Mandy Teefey is pushing back.
After Selena Gomez's mom was accused of taking drugs in her Wondermind office by employees in a scathing Cut exposé about the mental health-centered media company, she vehemently denied the allegations.
"I started Wondermind because I wanted to help people with mental illness," Mandy told the outlet in the Sept. 3 article. "It's unfortunate that a few disgruntled employees with an ax to grind can spread lies about me and distort the truth. Even more disappointing that the media is willing to amplify their lies."
The 49-year-old—who founded the start-up with Selena to create mental health-related content through a website, podcasts, TV shows and movies—was accused of snorting what employees believed was "a line of Ritalin" in her office, according to the article.
Meanwhile, other employees alleged that, along with Mandy having vitamin IV drips administered regularly by a "rotation of nurses," another nurse would give her liquid Benadryl. Although the drug is generally administered for severe allergic reactions, it can be used as a downer and hallucinogen.
Although she reportedly said to employees that she needed the injections to help with "allergies and the aftermath of severe COVID and double pneumonia in late 2021," according to the piece, employees alleged that she often "spoke slowly and seemed drowsy" afterward.
Along with denying the overall drug allegations, Mandy—who launched the company with Daniella Pierson as co-CEO and Selena as chief impact officer in 2022—emphasized that her snorting Ritalin, an ADHD medication, was "absolutely not" true.
In the summer of 2023, employees told the outlet that Selena often stepped in to pay employees and financially contribute as the company struggled to secure funding.
E! News has reached out to reps for Mandy, Selena and Wondermind for comment and has not yet heard back.
When concerns about Wondermind not paying employees came to the forefront in May, the company told Forbes that it had "rectified" the situation.
"Like many startups, Wondermind has been working through its own set of growing pains," a spokesperson told the outlet. "In the coming days, we will be transitioning into a new chapter for Wondermind, and continuing our important work in mental fitness that helps hundreds of thousands of people."
Despite ongoing concerns, the company was built with good intentions.
"Every person has their own mental health journey," Selena shared in a 2022 press release. "If we ignore them, glamorize them or hide them from the world, it doesn't change that the journey is very real."
She added, "Wondermind is extending a larger mental health conversation that began for so many during this pandemic."