‘HGTV’ Star Ty Pennington Posts Hospital Bed Selfie Detailing Serious Diagnosis

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Ty Pennington Reveals Throat Abscess, ICU StayRodin Eckenroth - Getty Images
  • Ty Pennington shared how a sore throat landed him in the hospital and in need of emergency surgery.

  • The HGTV host had a throat abscess that was blocking his airway, inhibiting his ability to breathe.

  • “A great reminder to LISTEN to your body when it’s telling you something,” he wrote.


HGTV host Ty Pennington is reminding fans to listen to their bodies after a health scare landed him in the hospital between entertainment gigs. After attending the Barbie film premiere in Los Angeles, he flew to Breckenridge, Colorado for another project and woke up at 4:00 a.m. struggling to breathe. “From the red carpet, to the ICU… this last week has been interesting!” he wrote under a hospital bed selfie on Instagram. “Turns out, that sore throat I’ve had for the last month was actually an abscess which had grown so large it was closing off my airway.”

Other photos pictured Pennington, 58, intubated, unconscious, and recovering in the hospital lobby. “Next thing I know, I was intubated and flown to the ICU in Denver. Wednesday I had surgery and yesterday afternoon I was released from the ICU ????,” he continued. “A great reminder to LISTEN to your body when it’s telling you something ???? #justhappytobehere.”

Fans flocked to the comments to share their condolences and support. “Omg, I am glad to hear you are recovering!!! That is very serious! Sending a hug ??????,” one person commented. “Get better soon!! We need someone to yell at us about home improvements! ????” another added. “So glad to see you are on the mend! Stay well,” someone else wrote.

According to Mount Sinai, a throat abscess, also known as a peritonsillar abscess, is a complication of tonsillitis caused by a build-up of bacteria. If caught early, it can be treated with antibiotics, but if developed, the abscess often needs to be surgically drained. If untreated, a throat abscess can be life-threatening—it can rupture into the throat, blocking the airway, and its contents can travel into the lungs and cause pneumonia.

Needless to say, Pennington is lucky his was caught in time.

At the beginning of the post’s caption, he apologized for not posting about the finale of Battle on the Beach, in which his mentees Ashley Basnight and Steve Lewis won the latest season by adding the most value to their beach-front home—with Pennington’s help, of course.

In his health update, the former Trading Spaces host apologized for not appropriately acknowledging their win. “I felt it looked weird that I hadn’t posted about my teams’ #BOTB VICTORY!! ???? SO freaking proud of @smashingdiy & @iamstevelewis!!” he wrote.

In a later post, he shared details of their award-winning project. “It was such an honor to work with Steve & Ashley—we clicked so well creatively,” he wrote. “It was so much fun to bounce ideas off of each other and push the creative limits. We are buddies for life ????.”

We’re wishing Pennington a speedy recovery!

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