Singer Selena Gomez finally announced why she had a quiet summer.
The 25-year-old Grand Prairie native was recovering from a kidney transplant.
“I found out I needed to get a kidney transplant due to my Lupus and was recovering,” she posted on Instagram Thursday morning. “It was what I needed to do for my overall health.
“I honestly look forward to sharing with you, soon my journey through these past several months as I have always wanted to do with you,” she wrote. “Until then I want to publicly thank my family and incredible team of doctors for everything they have done for me prior to and post-surgery.”
In her post, Gomez includes a photo of her and television actress Francia Raisa — a friend who donated her kidney to her — in side-by-side hospital beds.
“There aren’t words to describe how I can possibly thank my beautiful friend Francia Raisa,” she wrote. “She gave me the ultimate gift and sacrifice by donating her kidney to me. I am incredibly blessed. I love you so much sis.”
Within hours, Gomez’s post on Instagram had already drawn more than 4.4 million likes.
She encouraged people to learn more about Lupus by going online to the Lupus Research Alliance website: www.lupusresearch.org.
Last year, Gomez — who has 126 million followers on Instagram — told People magazine that she was taking a break to deal with panic attacks, depression and anxiety that she has had since being diagnosed with lupus in 2015.
Lupus is an autoimmune disease that can impact any part of the body, including kidneys.
She did draw local media attention earlier this year when she put her Fort Worth home in the Montserrat gated community — a 10,016-square-foot private estate that includes five bedrooms, 6 1/2 baths, a putting green, a tennis/sport court, a game room, a media and crafts room, a lagoon-style saltwater pool with water slide and spa and attached guest quarters — on the market for $2.9 million.
Anna Tinsley: 817-390-7610, @annatinsley
This story was originally published September 14, 2017 10:41 AM.