LeAnn Rimes has given her fans a completely honest update on her health, describing herself as “raw” in a candid Substack post published on Tuesday, May 12.
The country singer, 43, is off tour after postponing several concerts following a COVID-19 diagnosis that left her with vocal cord problems.
And in typical Rimes fashion, she didn’t sugarcoat any of it.
“My throat, my esophagus, my heart…heck, I even have a blister on my heel,” she wrote. “Oh, and I’m on my period too. When it rains, it pours.”
Beyond the physical, Rimes described the experience as a kind of forced reckoning.
“I feel like life has stripped me of everything and stripped me of everything for the moment,” he wrote.
“This whole illness has been incredibly humiliating. One minute you’re going through your routines, checking boxes, handling what’s next… and the next, your body just says, ‘No more.’ No feeding… no acting… don’t pretend you’re okay… just rawness.”
His next scheduled concert is currently three days away, but his voice is still recovering and his doctor has advised him to rest. It’s a situation she knows very well.
“For over 30 years, one of the hardest decisions and toughest internal battles I’ve faced every time I get sick and have shows scheduled is deciding whether to cancel/reschedule or perform, when I know full well that performing while I’m still half-sick isn’t the best thing for me in the long run,” he explained.
In the past, fear of disappointing fans meant she kept going anyway. That, he says, is no longer the focus.
“My health has to come first or I risk potential real injury by singing over inflamed and irritated tissue.”
The striking thing about the post is that despite everything, Rimes does not sound defeated. Your energy is maintained, your thinking is clear, and you describe being completely present with your emotions, no matter how uncomfortable they may be.
“There’s no numbness, no silence, no escape… just me, sitting in the middle of it all. And while I’ve found that tremendously uncomfortable at times, it also feels strangely sacred.”
There is also a family dimension that he touched on, without going into too many details.
One of her parents recently suffered a stroke and is now in rehab, she revealed, praising her husband Eddie Cibrian for keeping things together during what is clearly an overwhelming period for both of them.
“Seeing someone you love carry so much while you can barely carry yourself is kind of heartbreaking,” he wrote.
He closed the post with a direct message to fans who had tickets to the postponed shows, making it clear that the decision to reschedule was not one he made lightly.
“Every fiber of me wants to get ahead, show up and sing anyway,” he said.
“But at 43 years old, I know that honoring my body instead of overriding it is the wisest choice… for my voice, my health, and ultimately, for all of you too.”
