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Jeannie Seely announced that she underwent multiple back surgeries in March and two emergency surgeries in April
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The 84-year-old singer also spent eleven days in the ICU and had pneumonia
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She said that rehab is difficult but “each day is looking brighter”
Grand Ole Opry legend Jeannie Seely is on the mend after a string of health issues.
The country star, 84, revealed on Wednesday, May 7 that she is recovering from “multiple” back surgeries and two emergency abdominal surgeries, as well as nearly two weeks in the ICU and pneumonia.
“Over the past several weeks, I’ve received so many wonderful messages of love and concern about being missed on the Grand Ole Opry and on Sundays with Seely on Willie’s Roadhouse,” Seely said in a statement shared with PEOPLE. “Thank you for those, and I assure you that I miss you just as much! Hopefully I can count on that support as I struggle through this recovery process from multiple back surgeries in March, as well as two emergency abdominal surgeries in April, followed by eleven days in the intensive care unit and a bout with pneumonia.”
Jason Davis/Getty
Jeannie Seely performs onstage at The Grand Ole Opry on June 9, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee.
The star added that she’s focused on the future, and has plans to release new music. She also said she will return both to her SiriusXM radio show, which she’s hosted since 2018, and to the Opry stage, where she’s been a member since 1967.
“Rehab is pretty tough but each day is looking brighter and last night, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. And it was neon, so I knew it was mine!” she said. “The unsinkable Seely is working her way back.”
Seely was previously hospitalized in August 2024 for dehydration and acute diverticulitis.
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Terry Wyatt/Getty for Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Jeannie Seely attends the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s new exhibition, American Currents: The Music of 2018, on March 5, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee.
In December, her husband Eugene Ward died of cancer at age 92 in Nashville.
“My heart is broken now, but I am so grateful for the 15 years I had with Gene,” Seely said in a statement at the time. “I knew he was a good man when I married him, but as I experienced life with him, I learned he was a really great man. My love and respect for him grew daily, and it continues as I learn how much he touched the lives of so many people, some who only knew him by the example he set.”
Seely was honored by the Grand Ole Opry in 2022 for the most performances in Opry history. She was the first woman to regularly host Opry segments, and is also the first person to ever wear a mini-skirt on the revered Nashville stage.
Read the original article on People
