I'm A Celeb's Tulisa explains medical reason for cosmetic procedures and surgery

18 November 2024, 14:17

By Abbie Reynolds

I'm A Celebrity star Tulisa has spoken out about the health reason she had cosmetic work done to her face.

Loading audio...

I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Here! 2024 kicked off on Sunday (17th November), with the likes of GK Barry, Danny Jones and N-Dubz's Tulisa thrown into the deep end of jungle antics.

Sadly, despite all the fun and chaos that happened in the episode, a lot of the viewers' attention has been on Tulisa's face and how she looks a bit different to her X Factor judging days.

What many don't know is that the star has actually suffered from a disorder called Bell's Palsy since she was 24 years old.

Tulisa has been open about how this has affected her and how it led her to undergo multiple cosmetic procedures.

Read more: I'm A Celeb's Danny Jones and Tulisa set for drinking trial in first look at episode one

Tulisa avoided the cameras when she had her first Bell's Palsy attack. Picture: Getty

What happened to Tulisa's face?

According to the NHS, Bell's Palsy causes "temporary weakness or lack of movement," often on one side of the face. Speaking on Olivia Attwood's podcast 'So Wrong It's Right', Tulisa opened up about her struggle with the disorder.

"When I was about 24, I had my first Bell's palsy attack, I was sat at home and I had this massive burst of inflammation," she recalled, explaining how she suffered from swelling on one side that had "tingling sensations like little ants crawling in [her] face".

The singer revealed she was prescribed steroid injections for the swelling, but after it subsided, half of her face was left drooping. This left her hiding in her home for several months, self-conscious about her appearance.

She said: "I had a massive burst of inflammation and it went down but my whole face dropped... I couldn't move it, my face remained like that for seven months, I didn't go out, I just hid in the house."

Has Tulisa had work done to her face?

The now 36-year-old explained that it is only recently she's gone under the knife, revealing that before she had only ever had fillers.

She explained that, when her face started to droop, she started a "vicious cycle" of getting filler to try and balance out the "symmetry" of her face.

Reflecting on that time, she said: "I had good days and bad days and I'd sometimes take steroids to bring it down. In some interviews I looked fine, in others you'd ask, 'What the hell is going on with her face?'"

The first time Tulisa under went surgery was when a surgeon did an "explorative" operation on her face. She revealed: "So he went in and he's like, 'We have some good news, we found three chronically infected cysts in your face'."

Tulisa is on I'm A celeb this year. Picture: Instagram

During the first episode of I'm A Celeb 2024, Tulisa's good friend Rylan posted on X: "Also before people start going for appearance, Tulisa has been through a lot health wise the last few years so let’s not make sh-- jokes about her on twitter yeah x".