Kimberly Wyatt reveals toll of secret hip replacement

Pussycat Dolls singer Kimberly Wyatt has revealed she underwent a hip replacement two years ago after being left in intense pain and struggling to walk.

The 44-year-old, who is currently on the United Kingdom and Ireland leg of the PCD Forever tour, shared photographs and video from her hospital bed on Instagram on Monday. The posts included a video of her breaking down in tears, and images of her hobbling on crutches while wearing compression socks.

Wyatt wrote that for nearly two years before the procedure she limped daily and could barely sleep. She recalled watching her children play on holiday and feeling scared because she was in too much pain to walk over to them.

The singer said she was inspired to have the operation by tennis star Andy Murray, who underwent hip resurfacing surgery in 2019.

Hospital recovery and support

One photograph showed her then four-year-old son sweetly holding her hand as she rested in bed. Another captured him gently guiding her by the back as she took tiny, uncertain steps in a hospital gown.

"My four-year-old was helping his mum learn to walk again," Wyatt wrote. "I look at that picture now and I don't really see the surgery. I see the strength. I see love. I see this tiny person instinctively knowing Mum needed looking after for a minute."

Wyatt said the experience changed her perspective on strength, which she previously thought meant pushing through pain, working harder and not letting anyone see the cracks.

"Sometimes strength is letting someone put their hand on your back," she wrote. "Sometimes it's admitting you're scared. Sometimes it's taking one really wobbly step when you have absolutely no idea what the next ten are going to look like."

Returning to the stage

The singer posted the lengthy message from a hotel room in Dublin, where she said she had taken in too much news, online cruelty and information about what is happening to women. She got in the bath to find something she was proud of to focus on.

That led her to think about her hip and her body, which she said had broken down after three caesareans, four major surgeries and the joint replacement.

"I'd spent my whole life being the strong, athletic one," Wyatt wrote. "My body was my instrument. Admitting it had broken down felt frightening. So I quietly got on with it."

The "Don't Cha" singer expressed amazement that her body is still dancing on a Pussycat Dolls tour. While she acknowledged a battle in accepting it does not move like it did at 20, she said it still lets her perform, sweat and lose herself in music.

"That's f**king brilliant," she added.

Bandmates offer praise

Fellow Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger replied: "Thankyou for this".

Group founder Robin Antin called Wyatt an inspiring force who is now better and stronger than ever. Antin praised her for getting back on stage to "do a tilt like no one else in this world", joking that she takes partial accountability for making Wyatt perform the move for years.

In a June interview with The Times, Wyatt said her hip problems were the result of her caesareans and years of "dancing night after night, always wanting to nail it in front of 10,000 people".

She told the newspaper she was not totally pain-free but insisted her standing split tilt would feature on the tour, declaring: "That leg is my legacy".

Tour cancellations and controversy

Wyatt, Scherzinger, 48, and Ashley Roberts, 45, are touring as a trio. They launched the tour in Copenhagen in September and have played in Paris, Warsaw and the UK, with the Dublin show on Monday.

The group announced their comeback in March alongside "Club Song", their first single in six years, which was co-written and produced by Mike Sabath.

They originally planned a 53-date run across Europe and North America. But in May, they were forced to scrap the 33 scheduled shows in the United States and Canada due to dismal ticket sales.

Arenas were left 80 per cent empty despite seat prices being slashed to $30. Organisers pulled the plug a month before the first North American show in Palm Desert, California, on June 5.

Fans who purchased tickets through Ticketmaster or AXS were told they would receive automatic full refunds. Those who bought from third-party resellers were advised to contact their point of purchase.

The reunion has been marred by controversy because founding members Carmit Bachar, Jessica Sutta and Melody Thornton were excluded. Bachar and Sutta said they were blindsided and never asked to take part, with Sutta describing it as a cash grab.