diff --git a/plugins/platforms/telegram/adapter.py b/plugins/platforms/telegram/adapter.py
index e816bbcbf2cc..edced41f016c 100644
--- a/plugins/platforms/telegram/adapter.py
+++ b/plugins/platforms/telegram/adapter.py
@@ -1781,6 +1781,18 @@ async def _handle_polling_network_error(self, error: Exception) -> None:
 
         await self._drain_polling_connections()
 
+        # Guard against self._app being torn down by the supervisor while
+        # we were sleeping during the reconnect delay.  The stop() call
+        # above is already guarded but start_polling() was not — accessing
+        # self._app.updater when self._app is None raises AttributeError
+        # and silently kills the reconnect loop.  (#55992)
+        if not self._app or not self._app.updater:
+            logger.warning(
+                "[%s] Telegram app destroyed during reconnect delay (attempt %d) — aborting",
+                self.name, attempt,
+            )
+            return
+
         try:
             await self._app.updater.start_polling(
                 allowed_updates=Update.ALL_TYPES,