Doctors have warned S Club 7 singer Jo O’Meara that she may ‘never return to her old ways’ after undergoing four back surgeries.
After suffering a horrific injury that necessitated the surgeries, the 43-year-old thinks she will never be able to dance on stage again.
Jo, who rose to stardom with the pop group in 1999, had a portion of a disc in her back removed in November after waking up in so much pain she thought she’d been shot.
Speaking to The Sun, the Don’t Stop Movin’ hitmaker said she thought she was ‘having a convulsion’ as her ‘whole body went into shock’.
She continued: ‘The very first thing I did was call an ambulance. I was sobbing and shaking. They came running in but I couldn’t move. Every time I tried to get off the bed I was screaming and sobbing in pain.’
Jo was left reliant on pain medication after surgery, including morphine and 10 co-codamol tablets per day, but they provided little comfort.
Rachel Stevens‘ former bandmate has suffered irreparable injury to her right leg and believes she may never return to the stage since physicians have advised her that dancing may be impossible.
‘The surgeons said there was a very good chance of permanent damage to the legs and that I might never dance again,’ she said.
‘I was thinking, “Well that’s me done then,” because standing up on stage and singing Reach is kind of impossible if you can’t move.’
Jo has built a career out of performing at various Pride and festival events around the country since the band’s breakup in 2003 and brief reunion in 2015, with fans still ready to see the pop icon perform.
However, she has had to cancel and reschedule several events and is unsure when she will be able to play again.
She said: ‘I don’t know when it’s going to be, though, because to be on stage, you are dancing around and you are moving.
‘I couldn’t think of anything worse than going on stage in flat shoes. I can only hit high notes when I’m wearing a heel. It’s a psychological thing.’
Jo has a history of back problems and was forced to pull out of a number of events during the height of S Club’s fame.
‘I knew the feeling but it was ten times worse than what I’ve had before,’ she said of her recent injury.
‘Back surgery is so complex and every time they go in, they’re just weakening my back. I was absolutely petrified.’
Jo says her latest agony began last year during a health kick in which she was trampolining every day, which she believes caused the four bulging discs in her spine to begin pushing against her sciatic nerve.
Credit: Source