Bindi Irwin has given a health update after being rushed to hospital following a ‘sudden and serious’ medical emergency.
The 26-year-old daughter of iconic conservationist and zookeeper, Steve Irwin, was not able to attend her father’s gala due to a sudden emergency.
She was scheduled to attend her late father’s annual fundraiser held in Las Vegas on Saturday but her brother, Robert, shared that she was unexpectedly hospitalized after her appendix ruptured.
Speaking to People, Robert said: “She’s going to be OK, but surgery — out of all the things we were ready for, that was not one of them,”. He added that their mother Bindi was at the hospital with her.
He added that despite being in pain, Bindi was planning to attend the gala: “She came to Las Vegas and was ready to put on a brave face. She said, ‘I’m just going to tough it out.’ But the surgeon told her, ‘Your appendix is going. It’s got to come out.’”
Sharing to Instagram on Monday, the mother of one shared: ‘I am so thankful that I got the help I needed with Dr. Seckin and Dr. Chu at Lenox Hill Hospital. After many months of a grumbly appendix, I finally had to seek help the day of our Steve Irwin Gala,’.
‘After consulting with Dr. Seckin, we agreed that if I flew to New York, he could also check for endometriosis again. Surgery was a success.
‘My appendix was removed, along with another 14 lesions (after having 37 endometriosis lesions and a cyst removed two years ago). I also had a repair to a large hernia I acquired through childbirth four years ago.’
This follows her recent diagnosis of endometriosis last year.
Speaking to The Courier Mail at the time, she said:
“Everyone thought I was becoming this flaky person because I would bow out of commitments at the last minute because I was in so much pain,” she said.
In August 2023, Bindi revealed the battle she faced trying to receive a proper diagnosis, as many doctors dismissed her symptoms.
Once she was diagnosed, she found herself overwhelmed by the support from other women with similar stories:
“In some ways the response to telling my story was devastating because so many women came forward,” she said.
“It broke my heart. Some of their stories were identical to mine, some had taken even longer to get a diagnosis, and there was a plethora of women’s health issues shared with me, and with each other.”
“It was women supporting other women, and that part of it was beautiful,” she added.
Speaking to PEOPLE, she said: “I was tested for everything. Every tropical disease, Lyme disease, cancer, you name it. I had every blood test and scan imaginable,”.
Doctors often dismissed her pain, suggesting it was “all in her head.”
“You wind up in this strange space of self-doubt, fear, and insecurity,” she added.
The World Health Organziation described endometriosis as ‘a disease in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus. It can cause severe pain in the pelvis and make it harder to get pregnant.’
After having her operation at the Seckin Endometriosis Center in New York City, she said “I feel like I have a second chance at life,”, “It’s not like a light switch, but every week I feel like I’m able to do a little bit more.”
