Toni Braxton Hospitalized Again, Postpones Ohio Show
Toni Braxton was re-hospitalized due to complications stemming from lupus yesterday while in Ohio for a show. According to Braxton’s rep, Toni was released from the hospital Sunday morning and was continuing to Chicago as scheduled. Braxton posted a photo of her release to Instagram thanking fans for their support and well wishes.
Braxton was scheduled to perform in Cleveland, Ohio Saturday night but had to postpone due to the hospitalization. Toni’s Twitter account noted that Braxton’s chronic illness, lupus, need continual monitoring to ensuring Toni remained healthy and that this was a “minor setback” for Braxton’s current tour. According to Entertainment Tonight, Braxton was hospitalized earlier this month for several days due to the auto-immune condition.
No new date was announced for the Cleveland concert, however, Braxton’s Twitter account noted that tickets from the canceled show would be honored for the new performance. Toni announced the “Hits Tour” in July. The U.S. leg is supposed to take Braxton to 18 cities and only started this past week. Braxton’s first two performances scheduled for Los Angeles and Oakland had to be rescheduled due to Toni’s previous hospitalization. Braxton’s performances this week in Detroit and Kansas City went without a hitch.
Lupus is an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue. Symptoms can include painful, swollen joints, fever, chest pain, tiredness, and a rash. The degree and frequency of symptoms can fluctuate, but the condition should be monitored as it can damage vital organs including the heart and kidneys.
Toni Braxton went public with her battle with lupus in 2010, according to Billboard while receiving a Women in Achievement Award at the 8th Annual Lupus LA Bag Ladies Luncheon. At that time, Braxton revealed that though it was a tough decision for her to share her personal struggle, it was also a relief.
In an interview last year with the Huffington Post, Braxton discussed how difficult managing her lupus can be with Toni’s hectic career. Braxton is not only a Grammy-award winning singer but Toni also stars in a reality series with her four sisters called Braxton Family Values. In the Huffington Post interview, Toni likened her lupus flare ups to feeling like she had “the flu every day.” In that interview, Braxton had stated she had never let her symptoms force her to cancel a show.
“I’ve never done that. Even if I can’t perform, I still figure it out,” Toni told Huffington Post Live. “Sometimes I look back [at] that evening [and] I go, ‘How did I get through that?'”
The fact that Braxton has had to postpone a few concert dates may make fans fear that Toni’s condition has worsened, but perhaps it simply means Braxton is taking better care of herself. The rigors of traveling can take a toll on a person’s body, let alone traveling and performing. And other singers can acknowledge similar struggles to Braxton’s.
Selena Gomez was forced to cancel her world tour due to her lupus battle and Lady Gaga recently revealed she was diagnosed with “borderline lupus” after collapsing on stage and having to cancel several performance dates.
Despite the struggle to manage the symptoms, however, Braxton, Gomez, and Gaga vow to press on. After her hospitalization last week, Toni told E! that everyone has their struggles in life and lupus happens to be hers but Braxton was not about to let it get the better of her.
“I am so excited about going back on the road and seeing all of my wonderful fans and friends,” Toni said. “Everyone’s life is complicated and this is just a condition that I live with.”
[Featured Image by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for BMI]
