In December 2003, she began dating aspiring singer William Patrick "Billy" McKnight. On May 8, 2005, McKnight was arrested and charged with attempted murder after beating and choking her. After reporting to People magazine that she had cut ties with McKnight, McCready was found unconscious in a hotel lobby in Indian Rocks Beach, Florida, after attempting suicide in July 2005. She was hospitalized for a drug overdose after consuming a large amount of undisclosed drugs with alcohol. The couple eventually got back together and McCready became pregnant. In September 2005, while she was pregnant with McKnight's child, she attempted suicide again by overdosing on antidepressants. In March 2006, McCready gave birth to a son, Zander Ryan McCready.
On December 17, 2008, paramedics were called to McCready's Nashville home after an apparent suicide attempt; they transported her to a hospital after finding wounds on her wrists.