JoJo Siwa gave fans a major health scare over Thanksgiving weekend after she was rushed to the hospital in severe pain.
The terrifying ordeal happened just hours before she was due to hit the stage for a Black Friday show at the Mall of America.
The 22-year-old pop star opened up about the experience in a TikTok video, revealing that she'd been dealing with ongoing stomach pain for several days before things suddenly took a turn for the worse on Friday morning.
Pain so intense she could barely breathe
“So long story short, every time that I've been dancing for the last couple of days or even just like walking like anything, my stomach would just really, really hurt,” Jojo explained in the video.
“And I don't know why, but it just kind of passed, and so I was like, ‘Oh, maybe it's that time of the month, maybe it's a cramp, I don't know.’”
But the 'Boomerang' singer said the pain became unbearable just hours before her Mall of America appearance, leaving her unable to breathe.
“That set it off 100 times worse,” she said, describing how a morning bath backfired. “I was in [the bathtub] for maybe four minutes, and all of a sudden I was like, I have to get out immediately 'cause I knew I was gonna black out and I felt like I was gonna throw up.”
JoJo Siwa. Credit: Michael Buckner / Getty
Her mom, Jessalynn Siwa, quickly stepped in to help. After helping her daughter get dressed, she made the emergency call to 911.
“My mom knew it was really bad when I agreed we needed to call an ambulance,” JoJo said, admitting that as a “very, very tough girl,” it was out of character for her to ask for help.
A burst ovarian cyst was to blame
Once at the hospital in Minnesota, JoJo pleaded with paramedics and staff to let her out in time to perform. “There are a lot of people at the Mall of America that are waiting and counting on this performance,” she told them.
Doctors gave her pain medication and conducted an ultrasound, which revealed the cause of her agony - an ovarian cyst had burst and was bleeding into her stomach.
“So that's what was causing the excruciating pain — anytime that the blood in your stomach moves, that's the bleeding in the stomach,” she explained. “It's like brutal pain, and long story short, [it] should resolve itself. It should stop on its own.”
The diagnosis, while scary, brought some clarity. “Knowing what it was brought a lot of peace of mind,” she said.
Once the medication kicked in, JoJo added: “I was dancing in the hospital bed. I was feeling much, much better.”
JoJo was still able to perform. Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin / Getty
She still made it to the stage - just 10 minutes late
Amazingly, the singer and dancer was discharged within two hours and made her scheduled appearance at the Mall of America, just slightly behind schedule.
Fans who were at the event praised her dedication in the comments section of her TikTok.
“And you were only 10 minutes late!?” one wrote. “We would’ve never known.. so sorry! Minnesota was thankful for you! Me and my daughter won’t ever forget it!”
Another fan said: “All this and you still slayed that performance,” while a third urged: “I’m so glad you’re ok!! You crushed it at the mall!! Thank you for being there for us but please take care of you!! Your own health and happiness are the most important.”
Siwa said she's “doing alright” but “not 100 percent” yet. She plans to return to the doctor for follow-up care in the coming days.
“We're going to keep it pushing, and if I vomit or if I have that excruciating pain burst again, I got to go immediately back in, but we should be okay,” she told fans.
JoJo even joked that hospital staff may have worked extra fast because their kids were hoping to see her show: “Thank you for all the well wishes. Grateful for the Doctors and Nurses for working so fast and helping me get back on time, keep it pushing,” she captioned the post.