Loose Women star 'rushed to hospital' in 'the worst pain ever' but spends 24 hours waiting for a bed as star shares health update

Denise Welch has revealed she was rushed to hospital in ‘the worst pain ever’ two weeks ago as she shared a health update with fans.

The Loose Women star, 66, has confessed she spent 24 hours waiting for a bed as she took to social media in a now deleted post.

The star, who had been absent from the ITV panel show since November prior to her return this month, told fans: ‘2 weeks ago I was in the worst pain ever.

‘We waited 90 minutes for an ambulance and then I spent 24 hours in A&E waiting for a bed on the surgical ward.’

While she didn’t expand on the reason for her hospital stay in the post, last week on Loose Women Denise revealed she had been rushed to hospital with acute peritonitis – an infection of the stomach lining – shortly after returning to the UK after her holiday.

Denise explained: ‘I got back from a lovely holiday in the Caribbean last Saturday. All bronzed looking forward to coming on here and showing off my suntan. I got rushed into hospital on the Saturday with acute peritonitis – a perforated diverticulitis.

Loose Women star Denise Welch has revealed she was ‘rushed to hospital’ in ‘the worst pain ever’ but spent 24 hours waiting for a bed as star shared a health update with fans

‘I’ve been in hospital for a drip for a week! They didn’t have to do surgery, they got it with antibiotics thankfully. As my mother said, ‘Take me to the knacker’s yard!”‘

MailOnline have contacted Denise’s representatives for comment.

Last week she fought back tears on Loose Women as she revealed the truth behind her extended absence from the programme.

Denise was last seen live on Loose Women at the end of November, and then again for a pre-recorded segment about postnatal depression for the programme’s 25-hour talkathon the following month.

Addressing her absence from TV screens since, the soap star emotionally told how she realised something was wrong after a busy month of working throughout November.

She said how she first knew something wasn’t right when she accidentally drove up a one-way street and became overwhelmed by feelings of anxiety in the weeks afterwards.

Denise told the panel: ‘It was so black, so dark, so quickly.’

She told how began to suffer with panic attacks and her husband Lincoln tried to take her commitments out of her diary, including her theatre stint and her own charity ball.

After starting work on a pantomime, Denise recalled how she had collapsed in her hotel foyer within three days, adding: ‘I said to my agent you’ve got to pull me out.’

The star then fought back tears as she told how she overcame the episode and managed to put the feelings behind her after rest and recuperating.

WHAT IS DEPRESSION?

While it is normal to feel down from time to time, people with depression may feel persistently unhappy for weeks or months on end.

Depression can affect anyone at any age and is fairly common – approximately one in ten people are likely to experience it at some point in their life.

Depression is a genuine health condition which people cannot just ignore or ‘snap out of it’.

Symptoms and effects vary, but can include constantly feeling upset or hopeless, or losing interest in things you used to enjoy.

It can also cause physical symptoms such as problems sleeping, tiredness, having a low appetite or sex drive, and even feeling physical pain.

In extreme cases it can lead to suicidal thoughts.

Traumatic events can trigger it, and people with a family history may be more at risk.

It is important to see a doctor if you think you or someone you know has depression, as it can be managed with lifestyle changes, therapy or medication.

Source: NHS Choices

‘I’ve made a recovery from this episode,’ she emotionally told her co-stars.

Denise has been absent from the spotlight since she pulled out of a pantomime role, where she had been due to play Captain Hook at the Nottingham Theatre Royal over Christmas.

She was replaced by actor Richard Winsor, 43, and went on to also pull out of her own annual charity ball for GEM Appeal at Kimpton Clocktower Hotel at the end of November.

Just weeks before her absence, Denise had opened up about her mental health as she admitted: ‘I’ve had a really tough two weeks, which I’m still in a bit.’

‘I’d just done a podcast and article saying how I’d been free for five ears of clinical depression and I hope that something happened before I had a baby, reversed.

‘But sadly the unwelcomed visitor paid me another visit.

‘I’ve not been well for a couple of weeks, the reason why we’ve alluded to it is because we do all these things like Britain get talking, it’s good to talk.

‘Sometimes people still find it isn’t always good to talk for them.

‘I just wanted to come on here because, what I need when I’m poorly, I need for my friends to just know I need time to get well…

‘The people I work with, to say if you want to come to work, come to work, if you don’t, like last week I didn’t come I know my illness more than anyone.’

She added: ‘I’ve been free of the morning fear for a long time, because this illness is like this, I can be ok today, tomorrow I can be absolutely terrible and it’s isolating.

‘The NHS still describe depression as ongoing sadness, sadness is something you have a result of having something making you sad. it’s a health emotion.

‘Depression does exactly what it says on the tin.’