Tamar Braxton is taking off her dancing shoes. The singer took to Instagram Wednesday to announce that she will be leaving "Dancing With the Stars" because of a medical condition known as pulmonary embolism.
Posting a picture to Instagram from her hospital bed with her partner Val Chmerkovskiy, the 38-year-old singer wrote, "With a Heavy heart I regret to inform you that my season of #dwts has to come to an end along with the rest of my tour dates with @musicbykem."
Braxton, the youngest sister of Toni Braxton, who is also a musician, barely made it to the dance floor for Monday's show. She danced through her diagnosis during the show's dance-off segment, but despite nearly earning a perfect score, her new medical discovery has forced her to withdraw from the competition.
"After yesterday's final #dwts performance I went back to the hospital (after the doctors didn't want me to leave in the first place) only to find out that I don't have pneumonia but something way more serious and that is having several P.E.'s (blood clots in both sides of my lungs)," she wrote.
Braxton continued: "As you all know I will be the first to always encourage anyone to push through any obstacle that comes along one's way. But in this case, my health is my current obstacle. .. And in TRUE #tamartian form I must go about this the exact same way as I would anything else. I woke up to a mirror and saw myself this morning and that makes me the winner because that almost wasn't the case. Take care of yourselves... I love you and thank you ALL for your support."
The "Real" co-host also praised her partner, writing, "Big hugs and kisses to my boo @iamvalc for being beyond a friend, brother and the BEST partner EVER."
The U.S. National Library of Medicine notes that pulmonary embolisms "are caused by blood clots blocking the flow of blood to the lung artery." This can lead to low oxygen levels in the blood stream and organ damage if not treated.
This is the second time that a contestant has been eliminated because of medical reasons. During the first quarter of the season, reality star Kim Zolciak was eliminated for failing to compete due to her heart condition. Zolciak suffered several mini strokes and had to undergo heart surgery.
Season 21 of "Dancing With the Stars" airs Mondays 8 p.m.
