kids are starting off their school year a little differently.
The Jersey Shore alum shared insight into navigating “one of the hardest weeks” of her life in this hospital as her kids Meilani, 11, and Greyson, 10, prepared for their first day at school.
“Not the ‘first day of school’ picture I wanted to post… but then again, I guess we wouldn’t have one,” JWoww wrote on “I’ve spent every day fighting to get healthy enough to get home to my family while dealing with a horrible kidney infection and appendicitis.”
“I want to say it came out of nowhere, but the truth is, I haven’t felt like myself for months,” she admitted. “Weight loss, exhaustion, constantly feeling off… and then last Friday, my body finally said, ‘We aren’t making it like this anymore.’”
Although the 41-year-old—who shares her kids with ex-husband Roger Mathews—has been in the hospital for nearly a week, she wasn’t letting that hold her back from mom duties.
“No matter where I was, I was going to do my daughter’s hair for her first day,” she playfully added, commending her husband Zack Clayton for his help. “So we pivoted. And @zackclayton made sure the kids were here extra early this morning so we could all be together.”
So, rather than getting crazy and loud at their home, Meilani and Greyson got ready at the hospital.
“We didn’t get the picture in front of the house,” JWoww wrote. “We didn’t get the normal first-day morning. We got hospital bracelets, a hospital room, backpacks, hair supplies and a memory I don’t think any of us will ever forget.”
The experience ultimately changed the reality star’s perspective of the first day of school.
“But sitting here watching my kids get ready for school made me think about something much bigger,” she reflected. “What I am going through is temporary. For some families, something happened this summer that may have changed their lives forever.”
JWoww/Instagram“Some kids are walking into school carrying grief, illness at home, divorce, financial struggles, a new diagnosis, or something none of us can see,” she continued. “Some parents may be scrolling today wishing they could have taken that perfect ‘first day’ picture.”
So, JWoww was sure to issue a heartfelt reminder to fans.
“As our kids go back to school, please remind them to be kind,” she emphasized. “Notice the kid sitting alone. Don’t judge someone by what they’re wearing, what they have, or what they didn’t post. You never know what someone is carrying behind closed doors.”
“Our first-day picture looks a little different this year, but we have one,” she concluded. “And right now, I’m incredibly grateful for that. Here’s to a new school year. May our kids be safe, successful, and above all else… kind.”
As JWoww focuses on her recovery, keep reading for more celebs who’ve shared insight into their own health journey.
Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty ImagesBrianna “Chickenfry” LaPaglia’s Ovarian Cyst
In May 2026, the BFFs podcaster after doctors discovered a large ovarian cyst that had been twisting her organs and causing internal bleeding.
“There was a half a liter of blood in my pelvic floor,” Brianna shared in a TikTok video after the operation. “I have five incisions all over my stomach. They went in through my belly button with a camera so they could find all the blood.”
Jason Mendez/Getty ImagesNikki Garcia’s Breast Implant Injury
The Total Bellas alum revealed that after an elbow slam from fellow WWE star Piper Niven during a July 2025 wrestling match.
“It’s OK,” she told sister Bella Garcia at the time. “We’re going to get it fixed one day. I told the doctor, I go, ‘Newly divorced, so the minute the boots are hung up, I’m going to come back to you and we’re going to make these girls look real good, because these girls are going to get some action in the future and that can’t look like that.’”
Jason LaVeris/WireImageLupita Nyong’o’s Uterine Fibroids
The 12 Years a Slave star was—non-cancerous growths that develop in or around the uterus—in 2014, the same year she won an Oscar for performance in the movie.
However, it wasn’t until 2025 when she disclosed her diagnosis, writing on Instagram that she had been “suffering in silence” for more than a decade.
“When we reach puberty, we’re taught periods mean pain, and that pain is simply part of being a woman,” she shared. “We’re struggling alone with something that affects us most.”
Instagram/Suki WaterhouseSuki Waterhouse’s Hernia
In July 2025, the Daisy Jones & The Six star shared that she had been hospitalized due to a hernia—a gap in the muscular wall that’s commonly found in the abdomen or groin area—caused by wearing tight pants.
“‘Suki you never tweet anymore,’” she, formerly known as Twitter. “Have you ever considered I wore pants so tight 6 months ago it caused a hernia & I’ve been too scared to tell you?”
Paul Zimmerman/ShutterstockBrian Austin Green’s Perforated Appendix
The Beverly Hills, 90210 alum revealed in April 2025 that he was recovering from surgery after his appendix nearly burst.
“Last week, I started feeling some pain in my stomach,” Brian said in an video at the time. “I ended up going to the emergency room, and I had a perforated appendix. Not quite burst, but just before.”
He added, “I’m on the road to recovery. It’s not an easy process. This is my first major surgery.”
Steph Chambers/NWSL via Getty ImagesSavannah DeMelo Suffers “Medical Emergency” Mid-Game
The Racing Louisville midfielder collapsed just a few minutes into her soccer team’s Sept. 14 match against Seattle Reign at Lumen Field in Seatle.
The United States Women’s National Team player could be seen slowly sitting down on the field with a teammate by her side, per as the referee called for trainers to check her out. She collapsed seconds later.
“Savannah received immediate on-field care from medical personnel and was transported to a local hospital for further evaluation,” the National Women’s Soccer League later that night. “She is stable and alert.”
Chris Haston/WBTV via Getty ImagesAdam Devine’s Long-Term Injury From Childhood Accident
Adam Devine shared that injuries he sustained after getting hit by a cement truck when he was 11 years old are still affecting him to this day.
“It’s been a nightmare,” Devine said in a podcast. “I have spasms all over. For a while, [the doctors] told me I was dying—literally, within this last year.”
He noted that pain comes and goes, adding, “My body has all these things that are a little wonky and a little wrong with it.”
Photo by David Becker/Getty ImagesJason Tartick’s Back Injury
The Bachelor Nation alum shared that he went to the hosp due to overwhelming back pain that was aggravated during an RV trip with a friend.
“Right now, knees to my toes, it’s, like, still tingly, which is crazy,” he said on a March 2025 episode of his podcast. “And to put in perspective, I don’t know, man, like not to sound douchey, but like two, three weeks ago, maybe a month ago, I was squatting probably like 295 pounds. And right now, I can’t do a squat on my foot. I can’t do a one legged squat, I fall. It’s like I had a stroke or something.”
But with the help of a back specialist and some steroids, he added, “We’re on the mend.”
InstagramMatt Kirschenheiter’s Heart Attack
Real Housewives of Orange County’s Gina Kirschenheiter shared her ex-husband but thankfully survived the ordeal.
Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty ImagesTracy Morgan’s Medical Emergency
The 30 Rock star at a New York Knicks basketball game in March 2025, leading to him being wheeled out of Madison the following day, noting it was a case of food poisoning and that he was on the mend.
Instagram / Christy Carlson RomanoChristy Carlson Romano’s Eye Injury
The Even Stevens alum shared in February 2025 that she was shot in the face while on a trip to shoot clay pigeons to celebrate husband Brendan Rooney‘s birthday.
“There was another party with us and they unsafely fired in the wrong direction and shot me in the face,” she wrote on “@thebrendanrooney immediately sprung into action, assessed me, and rushed me to the hospital. I was hit in 5 places, one was less than an inch from hitting me directly in my right eye.”
The Kim Possible alum continued, “Unfortunately a fragment got lodged behind my eye and it is too risky to remove surgically at this time. Doctors will continue to monitor me (I can see normally at the moment).”
The actress said she was grateful to be alive. “I love my daughters, husband, family, and friends so much,” she said. “I saw my life flash before my eyes and I’m telling you, hug the people around you every chance you can. Life can change in an instant.”
Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty ImagesAmy Schumer’s Cushing Syndrome
While the internet isn’t always a kind place, is happy that, in this case, it helped her get answers.
“The internet really came for me after doing a bunch of press, and I was like, ‘OK everybody, relax,’” Amy recalled of her face on a January 2025 episode of “But then doctors were chiming in in the comments and they were like, ‘No no, we think something’s really up. Your face looks so crazy that we think something’s up. And I’m like, ‘Wait, I’m getting trolled by doctors?’”
After these doctors said they thought she had Cushing syndrome and that it may be caused by spiking coritsol levels or steroid injections, the Life & Beth creator thought, “Wait, I have been getting steroid injections in my scars.”
“I had a breast reduction, a C-section, whatever, and so I was getting these steroid injections,” Amy said. “So it gave me this thing called Cushing syndrome, which I wouldn’t have known if the internet hadn’t come for me so hard.”
Toda, Amy is just relieved she’s OK. As she shared in a February 2024 , “Finding out I have the kind of Cushing that will just work itself out and I’m healthy was the greatest news imaginable.”
Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty ImagesCasey Fitzgerald’s Neck Injury From Hockey Skate Blade
The AHL player was cut by a fellow player’s skate during a game in December 2024 and received 25 stitches. His father, New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald later told ESPN after his son was fully recovered, “We’re very lucky. I don’t wish that on any parent.”