Health Issues
In recent years, Payne has dealt with various health problems that have led to periodic absences from the anchor desk.
In January and August 2008, Payne went on medical leave after suffering from a series of mini-strokes. In November 2008 WGN-TV announced that Payne would take an indefinite leave of absence because of ongoing health issues. Payne admitted in an interview with Chicago Tribune media columnist Phil Rosenthal that she sought treatment for depression during her absence months earlier.
In January 2010, Payne publicly admitted that she was a recovering alcoholic, after having previously battled alcoholism for 20 years. “Substance abuse can become a problem," she said at the time. "I wanted to make sure that nothing in my life got out of hand.”
In late December 2010, Payne took a leave of absence from WGN-TV to rest her vocal cords. Greg Caputo, news director at WGN-TV, told TimeOut Chicago columnist Robert Feder in an interview that “she was diagnosed a few months ago and tried to tough it out . . . (but) her doctor wants her to stay off the air till they can fix the problem.”
Read more about this topic: Allison Payne
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