Wendy Williams will be taking a three-week break from her eponymous talk show to handle her declining health.
The 53-year-old star, who has talked about her overactive thyroid and Graves’ diseases in the past, revealed Wednesday morning that she’s been prescribed time off.
“My thyroid has been totally cattywampus,” Williams said. She’s also experiencing several symptoms including difficulty sleeping, rapid heartbeats and intolerance to heat. “I feel like there are birds swimming around my head … Constantly high. But not high,” she added.
“My doctor has prescribed, are you ready? Three weeks of vacation,” she told audience members. “I was pissed. Encore performances, really?”
A rep for the show told Page Six, “The show will be in repeats during this unplanned hiatus. A live show was produced today so that Wendy could speak directly to her fans and explain her condition.”
In July 2017, Williams opened up about her thyroid disease, telling People, “I have thyroid disease. There are few symptoms. Or a few byproducts of having thyroid disease that a lot of people aren’t aware of.”
Williams adds those suffering sometimes suffer from goiters in the throat area.
“But what people don’t understand is that thyroid disease is also related to Graves’ disease, which is what the elder Mrs. Bush, remember Barbara Bush back in the day … the muscles behind your eyes,” she said, referencing protruding eyes. “This doesn’t happen to everybody, but I happen to have Graves’ disease. I have to make a concerted effort in conversation. I’m not trying to give you the screw face, I just don’t want to give you the scary, scare. The muscle pressure behind the eyes pushing them forward.”
Williams says she’s gone to see a doctor about it and there is little that can be done. Thinning hair is another symptom of thyroid disease, which prompts her to wear wigs, she said.
Wednesday’s news follows an unexpected three days off last week due to flu-like symptoms.
She also fainted on live TV back in October 2016. She blamed the incident on being overheated.
Staffers on her show have also secretly expressed their concerns over her health, especially following reports that her husband, Kevin Hunter, was cheating.
“Wendy has become very thin recently, and the show staff wonders if she is under a lot of personal stress,” an insider said.