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'I can't stop crying'

‘Barstool’ Podcast Host Rushed Into Emergency Surgery for Stomach Pain

She initially blamed the pain on a late-night fast food run. The actual cause was far more alarming.

Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

PublishedMay 11, 2026, 6:08 PM EDT

UpdatedMay 12, 2026, 10:01 AM EDT

Updated May 12, 2026, 10:01 AM EDTPublished May 11, 2026, 6:08 PM EDT

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A popular podcaster and content creator was rushed into surgery after she began experiencing sudden stomach pain.

Brianna LaPaglia, also known as Brianna Chickenfry, is a 26-year-old podcast star and social media influencer with over 3.5 million followers.

LaPaglia quit college after being hired by Barstool Sports, where she hosts the Plan Bri podcast. She previously co-hosted BFFs with Josh Richards and the company’s founder, Dave Portnoy.

Her career and public profile have expanded beyond the podcasting world, with LaPaglia posing for the coveted Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and dating Grammy-winning country singer Zach Bryan.

On Sunday, LaPaglia posted a TikTok video showing her in a hospital gown. “I’ve never been in this much pain in my life,” the caption reads.

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LaPaglia went into detail about what happened in a TikTok video posted the following day.

“It hurts to talk, I’m in so much pain today,” she tells her followers.

In the video, LaPaglia explains that she began to experience stomach pain after eating a meal from Taco Bell late on Saturday.

At first, she assumed something might be wrong with her food, although the man she was with did not have a similar reaction to the shared meal. She planned to sleep the pain off.

“I wake up at three in the morning in like excruciating pain,” she said. “I sneak out of the room, and I start projectile vomiting. I’m lying on the bathroom floor, and I’m literally convulsing.“

After eight hours of debilitating pain, LaPaglia decided to visit the emergency room.

“Nothing is getting better; the pain progresses to 20 out of 10,” she said.

The doctor first dismissed her pain, she said, but the situation’s critical nature soon became apparent.

“While I’m getting a vaginal ultrasound, the women are like… I can audibly hear them freaking out,” LaPaglia said.

She was rushed to a different hospital in an ambulance and underwent emergency surgery.

“Essentially, I had a giant cyst on my ovaries,” she said, adding, “It was twisting my ovaries, so it’s this thing called torsion.”

“It was twisting my organs, and it was causing a lot of bleeding; there was half a liter of blood in my pelvic floor,” she said.

During the surgery, the doctor had to make five incisions in her stomach in order to remove the cyst and drain out the blood.

“I’m so f---ing mad that I have all of these scars on my stomach,” she said. “I know it’s superficial, but like seriously, bro, I was supposed to have the best Sunday ever and get a pedicure, but then I got emergency surgery.”

In the next TikTok video, also posted Monday, LaPaglia described her current pain level as “unbearable,” “excruciating,” and “childbirth level.”

Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

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