Fox 2 Detroit/YouTube Nicole Curtis discusses a restored house on Fox 2 Detroit in January 2022.
Fans of Nicole Curtis and her “Rehab Addict Rescue” shows were stunned by the designer’s announcement on July 13 that her new series — “Rehab Addict Lake House Rescue” — would not be premiering as planned that night, due to a personal health crisis.
Curtis is no stranger to controversy. She is a vocal advocate for the preservation of historic buildings, even if it means going up against powerful leaders and big developers, and she endured a very public, three-year custody battle over her young son. In 2021, Curtis went to court — and won — over a run-down house she bought but that the City of Detroit Land Bank claimed she didn’t rightfully own.
Now, it seems either the cumulative impact of those challenges has taken its toll on her health, or a new hardship has shown up in her life. Either way, she took to Instagram to share that she’s hit a wall.
Nicole Curtis Shares Cryptic Post About Her Health & Future
Curtis posted a mirror selfie to her Instagram feed, taken in what looks like a public bathroom, with a rolling suitcase behind her.
“Before you go looking, no shows tonight,” she wrote, referring to the postponement of her series. She continued, “Ive recently seen my body,physically and mentall, g through things I never imagined. I’ve gone from shock to awe, happiness to sadness, ok to how the f do I get through the next minute and finally to I’ve survived. For all those reasons, I made a call and said I’m done. Not forever, but until this phase of my life becomes my past.”
Fans and friends rallied around the designer, including HGTV colleague Jenny Marrs, host of “Fixer to Fabulous,” who wrote, “Good for you for pushing pause and doing what you need to care for your body!” Sarah Baeumler, host of HGTV’s “Renovation Island,” was one of thousands who liked the post.
Curtis took a two-year hiatus from television, due to the stress of a decade of constant filming and renovating, and returned in Jan. 2021 with the premiere of “Rehab Addict Rescue.”
“I can’t lie and say that I’m not nervous about having a show back out there,” she told People Magazine at the time. “I had a very chaotic ten years. I didn’t want to go down that path again. I’m hyper-focused right now on remembering where I want to be, what matters in my life, what my priorities are.”
Curtis Shares Series of Instagram Stories About ‘When Bad Things Happen’
GettyHGTV’s Nicole Curtis poses with a fan in 2016.
In addition to her Instagram post, Curtis tried to further explain her situation by posting a series of Stories that are only visible on Instagram for 24 hours.
In the first Story, featuring white text over a black background, Curtis wrote, “There are 2 kinds of people in life -those that pretend it’s not happening & those that weather it out til the storm is over. And when bad things happen -the divide is, unfortunately, painfully obvious. Like eating spaghetti in a white shirt obvious.” Curtis added three emojis at the end — a face with one raised eyebrow, a blond woman with her hand over her face, and another emoji face crying with laughter.
Her second Story featured a screenshot of post she’d previously shared in Oct. 2021 with a photo of the lake house that had been the focus of filming her postponed show, “Rehab Addict Lake House Rescue.” Over the image, she wrote, “For those of you asking: We were set to premier my lake house shows 3 hour special @hgtv”
Then she posted an aerial image of a lakeside town, presumably the location of the refurbished house — Lake Orion, Michigan — with more text. She wrote, “Everything that could go south did & I was commuting from LA every week to do it”
Next, over a photo of her giving the thumbs-up signal while swimming in a lake, she wrote, “I’m a ‘make the best of it’ Person, but reached my limits when…”
She continued, “the stress of ‘doing it all’ broke my body.” This text appeared over a photo of Curtis slumped down in a chair in a waiting room, wearing a surgical mask and sunglasses.
The sixth slide in the series of Stories had a black background with the following text, which featured little punctuation: “Let me pause right here and say…Make sure-today-you have people you can count on in these moments Not people that can’t deal with these moments Not people that will expect you to ‘carry on’ but people that will carry you I’m a strong woman & I got carried”
The next image featured Curtis looking healthy and focused as she operated heavy construction machinery, wearing a black tank top and shorts. Over the photo, she wrote, “The world sees this, my friends…” but that was followed up with an image of her curled up under blankets in a hospital bed, still wearing her mask. Over that photo, a stark contrast from the one before, she wrote, “the ones that know the struggles, the heartache, the journey See this and get me through” along with a red heart emoji.
The final Story that Curtis posted on July 13 was a short video her talking animatedly on an outdoor porch while Elton John’s “I’m Still Standing” played over it. On top of that video, Curtis added the following text: “Anyhow, the shows are there @hgtv has been most gracious And when my heart is healed & I feel it’s time -I’ll make it happen – I always do.” Again, this was followed by a red heart emoji.
It is not evident yet what specific challenges have taken such a toll on Curtis, or why the series could not air if — as she wrote — “the shows are there.” Meanwhile, HGTV has not provided any updates on when the new series might be rescheduled.
Fans have flooded Curtis’s Instagram feed with well wishes and comments of concern, with many stating how much they’ll miss her and her shows for the time being.
“Whatever it is just know that you have so many in your corner,” one woman wrote. “You may not know us but we are here. Sending hugs and hoping things get better soon. Nothing is more important than taking care of your kids and yourself.”