Dancing with the Stars is in the middle of a lot of changes. Host Tyra Banks has moved on and former DWTS pro Julianne Hough is taking her place. Julianne will handle the front of the house along with Alfonso Ribero, who thankfully kept his slot.
Legendary judge Len Goodman retired from his chair of criticism and praise. And he will be missed. Julianne’s brother Derek Hough is keeping his judge’s chair, but Len will not be replaced. Correction, Len cannot be replaced. Returning judges will be Bruno Turniolo and Carrie Ann Inaba. Also, there will never be a time in my life when I write her name without hearing the dulcet tones of announcer Alan Dedicoat saying, “CARRIE ANN INABAAAA.”
Speaking of Carrie Ann, our girl has been having a rough time – and that’s putting it mildly. In an unfortunate turn of events, Carrie Ann has been sidelined by an angry appendix. E! News has the details.
On Instagram, Carrie Ann told her followers she was diagnosed with acute gangrenous appendicitis. Okay, this is horrible on several levels. First, acute gangrenous appendicitis is when your appendix is SEVERELY inflamed and has signs of dead tissue. Secondly, she must have been in an enormous amount of pain.
Carrie Ann underwent an emergency appendectomy but had “a few small complications.” Unfortunately, the “small complications” resulted in a 4-day vacation in the hospital. The professional dancer was experiencing extreme discomfort, but that’s standard in the life of a dancer. That said, Carrie Ann regrets delaying her treatment.
She said, ”I should have come straight to the hospital right when the pain in my abdomen started, after the sudden and violent vomiting that knocked me off my feet.” She should have, but pain often gets put aside when you’re a single parent. And yes, that includes kids who are furry and have four legs. I’ll die on this hill.
Carrie Ann added, “I should have gone when I couldn’t stand without excruciating pain, but I honestly didn’t want to leave my babies, and I’m so accustomed to pain—thought I should let it play out.” Well, it definitely played out. Carrie Ann’s reluctance to care for herself only added to the time away from her family.
Thankfully her scary episode is over and Carrie Ann is on the mend. Her recovery will take four to six weeks and she clearly learned her lesson. She advised her fans appendicitis attacks can “happen suddenly and seemingly out of nowhere.” They can also be life-threatening, so please don’t hesitate to seek medical advice if you find yourself suffering.
She continued, “And when you are in that much pain, the last thing you want to do is go anywhere. And when you have autoimmune disease, you are often having strange health occurrences that no one can explain or help you with so sometimes, you try to wait it out, like I did. I was wrong.” It sounds like Ms. Inaba might have had a firm talking-to by her concerned surgeon. Carrie Ann urges people to head to the doctor because “it could be something very serious.”
It definitely sounds like the least enjoyable situation possible and Carrie Ann is very fortunate. “While it’s been quite a painful experience, I also know it’s a gift to even feel this pain, she explained. “I realize after speaking with my doctor that it could have been much worse.” Ah yes, that’s the physician lecture coming in loud and clear. You may not know, but Carrie Ann has several autoimmune diseases that can complicate even the smallest health scares.
She said, “One of the biggest gifts of having autoimmune conditions is that you become much more aware of how fragile your health can be. With autoimmune conditions, there’s so little that they know about it that there’s so much space to grow and learn and be your own best advocate.” In a special mention to the staff in charge of her care, she wrote, “Special shout out to the wonderful staff of doctors, nurses and aides at @cedarssinai for taking such good care of me.” Glad Carrie Ann is doing well and back with her fur kids.
TELL US- HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED APPENDICITIS? ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT SEASON OF DWTS? ARE YOU SURPRISED CARRIE ANN WAITED SO LONG BEFORE GETTING HELP?
[Photo Credit: Michael Kovac/Getty Images for the Critics Choice Real TV Awards]