A RuPaul’s Drag Race legend has revealed how they suffered a ‘horrific’ injury after a simple fall at home.
Describing the grim ordeal, Tempest DuJour – real name Patrick Holt – said she fainted after getting out of bed early on Sunday morning.
“Around 3am on Sunday morning, I got out of bed and passed out, hitting the corner of my dresser,” she said.
‘Five hours later I had stitches and my lower lip reattached. Um.”
Shocking photos shared on the social media platform also show the Season 7 contestant’s bleeding cut lip and stitches.
Tempest DuJour – whose real name is Patrick Holt – detailed the grim ordeal online, saying she fainted after getting out of bed early on Sunday morning and hitting her head.
The 57-year-old told her 163,000 Instagram followers: ‘Around 3am on Sunday morning I got out of bed and passed out, hitting the corner of my dresser. Five hours later I had stitches and my lower lip reattached. Ugh’
Shock photos shared on the social media platform also show the season 7 contestant’s bleeding cut lip and stitches
DuJour, 57, did not tell her 163,000 Instagram followers exactly what prompted the fainting spell.
But in response to comments wishing her well, the Drag Race star from Arizona said she believed she “probably just woke up from a deep sleep too quickly.”
DuJour added, “My husband heard the fall and found me pretty quickly.”
She also told star Michelle Visage, a judge on the show, who rushed to ask if she was OK, that she was in “a lot of pain and swelling.”
But she added that she would “see a plastic surgeon soon.” It’s all embarrassing.’
More than 200,000 people are hospitalized every year after a sudden blackout.
Low blood pressure, caused by standing up too quickly, is often attributed to fainting.
Without adequate blood flow, not enough oxygen reaches the brain stem, the part of the organ that helps us be conscious and keeps us awake.
People can also faint from hunger due to a drop in blood sugar levels due to a lack of food, which deprives the brain of the energy it needs to function properly.
Although fainting often has a minor cause, it can occasionally be a sign of something more serious.
Heart problems, such as arrhythmia, where the heart beats too slowly or too quickly, can also interrupt blood flow to the brain and lead to a temporary loss of consciousness known as syncope.
DuJour did not reveal what led to the fainting spell. In the photo, in 2017
In response to comments wishing her well, the Arizona drag performer said she believed she “probably just woke up from a deep sleep too quickly.”
Orthostatic intolerance, caused by a disturbance in the autonomic nervous system – which controls unconscious activities such as heart rate – can also be the cause.
Normally, when you stand up, your heart should automatically beat faster for a moment to ensure that enough blood reaches the brain to compensate for the change in body orientation.
However, in cases of orthostatic intolerance, this does not happen, delaying adequate blood flow to the brain, causing those affected to feel faint.
It is four times more common in women than men and may have a hormonal relationship, as it seems to be worse around menopause or a woman’s period.
If you feel like you’re going to faint, try lying down with your legs up, the NHS says.
If you can’t do this, sit with your head between your knees and try drinking some water and eating something, taking deep breaths in between.
DuJour appeared on season 7 of RuPaul’s Drag Race in 2015 and was eliminated in the first episode, but then reappeared in seasons 10 and 14.