American Pop-culture blogger Perez Hilton recently shared his ‘crazy, crazy, crazy saga’ about how he spent 21 days in the hospital, and how his flu went from common cold to a life-threatening situation. In a teary-eyed account, he revealed his mistakes and lessons, and how it turned out to be the ‘best and worst’ experiences of his life.
Perez Hilton or Mario Lavandeira Jr revealed that his ailment all started from the flu. Clarifying how he doesn’t consume any substances, he duly took the medicines prescribed to him. However, he made one grave mistake of not pairing the drugs with food, which took a hit at his digestive system, Hilton shared.
Why was Perez Hilton hospitalised?
“I took my medication for the flu for a week…But I didn’t take any of my medication with food,” revealed Hilton. The prescribed drugs, he revealed, could be hard on the stomach or intestines.
“The day before I was hospitalised, I was in so much stomach pain,” he shared and deduced, “because I have been taking all of this medication without food for a week, I developed an ulcer, then a perforation. And then sepsis.” Teary-eyed as he recalled the horror, he said, “People die of sepsis.”
A study titled ‘When should I take my medicines‘, published in the National Library of Medicine, reveals that food in the gut affects drug absorption. “To minimise gastrointestinal upset, including nausea and vomiting, give the drug with or soon after food,” the study reveals, exploring the gut-tolerance of the drug
‘X-ray, CT scan, ultrasound’
Sharing how he arrived at the Southern Hills Hospital, Los Angeles, in pain, he remained this way for the following days. He found himself in a constant loop of tests, scans, and screenings. “The first few days were a lot of pain and constant tests. X-ray, CT scan, ultrasound, X-ray, CT scan, ultrasound, because they couldn’t find where the perforation was,” he shared.
“There’s this hole inside of me. Where is it?” he shared. These tests were followed by laparoscopic surgery, where small incisions are made to figure out the root cause of a problem. “Then, after flipping around all of my organs, washing me out, because I had so much infection in there,” he revealed.
My stupidity landed me in the hospital for 21 days!! | Perez Hilton recounts why he ended up in the hospital for 21 days, shares the mistakes he made and reveals the lessons learned. This has been the worst AND best experience of his life. Perez Hilton explains why and all here! pic.twitter.com/mOtwEfPnHm
— Perez Hilton (@PerezHilton) March 23, 2026
But that was not the end of his struggles. Hilton still had a lot of infection stuck in his body, and later shared that his lungs had fluid on each side, too. “The sepsis just kept working, and my body kept falling apart,” Hilton shared.
While professionals drained out the infection from his body, his heart ‘got out of control’, too. “They had to put me on heart medications. And then I developed another infection in the hospital, which apparently is common to get,” he shared, as he completed two weeks in the hospital.
‘I just want to be with my babies’
Explaining how ‘last week was hell’, Hilton’s only emotion in the third week was exhaustion. He missed his family and recalled feeling, “I just want to be with my babies.”
After two weeks, when he finally started to eat solid food, not via an IV, he ended up soiling himself. Feeling humiliated for the larger part of it, he expressed gratitude towards his nurse on call, Bella, and Dr Reeves, Dr Yacoubian, and Dr Hansen.
Being in the hospital for nearly a month, Hilton lost a lot of weight and significant muscle, hence when he finally did get home, he felt weak. “I clearly lost a lot of weight. And now that I’m home, I’m not 100%. I brought the hospital with me,” he expressed.
Currently attached to another IV and under constant observation and medication, Hilton is still recovering. Sharing how getting back home was difficult, he shared a ‘cathartic hug’ with his babies as they all expressed their relief with tears and more.
Perez Hilton’s lifestyle mistakes: Sleep, work, and more
Taking this experience as a wake-up call, Hilton took it as a learning lesson. And looking back, he is excited to make some positive changes in his life. “I used to be a workaholic,” he said as he revealed that he used to sleep for only 4-5 hours a night.
“I am going to force myself, and I am going to sleep eight hours a night going forward,” he shared. “I’m ashamed of myself,” Hilton reflected, as he said that he was so busy producing for his family, that he was ‘not doing the little things.’
“I’m going to have dinner with my kids and my mom every night from now on,” he shared, recalling how his mother was the one who had dinner with the children most of the time.
Disclaimer: The content in this article is based on a viral social media discussion and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. While the author has incorporated the personal medical experience of an individual and ensured full authentic information is provided to the reader, you should always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider regarding a medical condition or treatment. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read here.