Country superstar Carly Pearce has been sharing details of a heart problem she was diagnosed with five years ago – and a source exclusively tells Life & Style the ordeal has given her a whole new perspective on life as she lives with the condition and counts her blessings.
“Carly is doing a lot better these days, but it’s still something that weighs on her, she has to take things easier than she used to and just be really careful not to overdo it,” the source says.
The Grammy-winning singer, 34, revealed in an Instagram video in May 2024 that she suffers from pericarditis, which is inflammation and irritation of the thin, saclike tissue that surrounds the heart and holds it in place, according to the Mayo Clinic. The disease can cause different symptoms that range from mild to severe – or none at all for years – though Carly has previously opened up about the intense pains and issues the disorder causes her.
“I had a really debilitating chest pain that was only relieved if I bent over like this,” Carly told the hosts of Today on January 31 while leaning forward to demonstrate how she deals with the disease. “That’s a classic symptom of pericarditis, and then when you lay back, it gets way worse, because that wall is kind of inflamed around your heart.”
The source notes that for the “What He Didn’t Do” singer, the condition comes with a frightening revelation, considering her family history. “It’s been a scary journey because her dad nearly died from a heart attack when she was a teenager, so when she first started having issues with her heart, she was understandably very worried.”
“It’s under control now, but it’s always something in the back of her mind that she needs to be monitoring and aware of,” the insider adds.
According to doctors at the Mayo Clinic, the effects of pericarditis can be hard to predict. Most cases will never resolve on their own, and in severe instances that result in debilitating pain and loss of quality of life, continual medication may be necessary and in the most dire cases, heart surgery.
“It’s never going to completely go away, but she’s learned to live with it and is thanking her lucky stars that she caught it in time,” the source says.
Pericarditis can cause complications down the road and make other illnesses more intense, which is why Carly now takes her health issues seriously, even at her young age. She recently came down with a bad flu while on her Hummingbird world tour, telling fans, “Y’all, the last few days I have been battling feeling sick but yesterday the flu hit me right in the face,” via an Instagram post complete with a photo of her lying in bed surrounded by tissues and cough drops.
“God has a funny sense of humor sometimes … these shows are some of the biggest sold out shows of my career & of course this would happen,” she added.
Even while dealing with her ongoing health battles, the insider says she’s making it her “mission” to spread the word about her heart condition and is “alerting other people to the warning signs,” so other sufferers can catch it early, which can improve their outcome.
