The 'Don't Be Tardy' star says she found out about her heart condition only after she was taken to hospital due to her mini stroke.
- Oct 8, 2015
AceShowbiz - Kim Zolciak says she has a hole in her heart. The "Don't Be Tardy" star reveals on "Good Morning America" that her heart condition was discovered only after her mini stroke that left her temporarily paralyzed and unable to speak late last month.
"It was a blessing in disguise," the Bravo reality star told Michael Strahan. "The minor TIA (transient ischemic attack) revealed that I have a PFO (patent foramen ovale), which is like a hole in your heart. I was born with it and it never closed. That's what caused it basically."
Zolciak also slammed people who accused her of faking the illness. "I think it's sick that somebody would ever think that and some of the people that have said that, it just shows me their mentality," she said. "I don't think that many people would really fake a stroke. Especially since I love 'Dancing with the Stars.' It's been one of the best experiences of my life. It's been very difficult for me to not be on the show."
Wendy Williams was one of those people who believed Zolciak was just pretending. "Kim, ... I hope you're not fibbing about the stroke," Williams said on her show. "If you did have a mini stroke, I'm sorry to hear about that. If, however, you just wanted to get off 'Dancing with the Stars', all you had to do was just stub your toe."
In response, Zolciak revealed on Instagram an invitation to do "The Wendy Williams Show". She additionally wrote, "Absolutely appalling!! Wendy Williams, how disgusting for you to insinuate I 'faked' my mini stroke on your show this morning!! You mad cause I didn't come on your show!! This clearly shows your warped mentality!!"
Kim Zolciak's health issue caused her to be axed from "DWTS" because she was not allowed to fly to Los Angeles on doctor's order. She and her pro dancing partner, Tony Dovolani, launched a petition to come back to the show, but the decision remained. "I feel like they could have done something via satellite," she said on "GMA". "They've made exceptions in the past."
"The producers, the casting directors, they all kind of fought for me. But when it came down to it, it was the lawyers that made the final decision," she explained. Though she was booted early from the show, she is expected to appear on the upcoming finale. "I'm not sure what they're going to have me doing," she said. "I don't care. I'm just so excited to be there."
