Madonna opens up about surviving sepsis: 'It can kill you'
Madonna is opening up about her health struggles in a new interview.
The "Queen of Pop," now 67, sat down with podcast host Jay Shetty in a new episode of Shetty's "On Purpose" podcast, released Monday.
Madonna discussed the incident that sent her to the hospital back in June 2023, an event she previously described as a "life-threatening illness." At the time, the "Like a Prayer" singer said she had contracted a bacterial infection, which she reaffirmed in Monday's podcast episode.
"I was rehearsing for my tour and I got a bacterial infection," Madonna explained. "One minute, I was alive and dancing around, and the next minute, I was in the [intensive care] unit of a hospital, and I woke up from being unconscious for four days."
After her release from the ICU, Madonna said she developed sepsis, a life-threatening condition resulting from infection.
"I got out of the hospital. They took me off the ventilator. I started to breathe on my own, and I had something, it's called sepsis, and it can kill you," she said.
What to know about sepsis
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sepsis is the body's "extreme response to an infection" and can set off a "chain reaction throughout your body," leading to a medical emergency.
Typically, sepsis is caused by a bacterial infection, but in some cases, it can also be caused by a fungal infection or viral infection, like influenza, or the flu.
Sepsis impacts at least 1.7 million adults in the U.S. each year, and approximately 350,000 adults who develop sepsis will die during hospitalization or are discharged to hospice, per the CDC.
Madonna said she thought she could overcome sepsis quickly, but she said it completely knocked her down.
"I've always seen myself as superwoman. So, I was like, 'Oh, I'm going to kick this. I'm going to be good. I'm getting back into rehearsals,'" she recalled. "And I had no strength. I had no energy. I couldn't get out of bed and I didn't know when it was going to end."
What are the dangers of sepsis?
Anyone with sepsis requires immediate medical attention, and even localized infections can progress to sepsis.
Diagnosis and treatment requires blood tests and medical assessment, however symptoms that can indicate sepsis, according to the CDC, include clammy or sweaty skin, confusion or disorientation, extreme pain or discomfort, fever, a high heart rate or weak pulse, shivers or feeling very cold, or shortness of breath.
Sepsis can cause organ failure, tissue damage or even death.
Doctors may treat people with sepsis in a variety of ways, including with antibiotics, or in some cases, with surgery to remove damaged tissue.
Madonna said she leaned in part on her faith -- the singer practices Kabbalah -- to help her overcome her fight against sepsis.
"[My Kabbalah teacher is like], 'The sooner you accept what's happening to you and that you don't know when it's going to end, the sooner it's going to end,'" she said. "That made so much sense to me. And of course, it did."
