Charlene in crisis I MISS MY KIDS

Despite being rushed to hospital, the princess is still apart from family

- Judy Kean

It was meant to be a brief trip to promote a cause close to her heart. But more than five months after Princess Charlene traveled to South Africa as part of a wildlife preservation campaign, she is still there due to health issues that have her loved ones worried.

Fears have grown for Zimbabwe-born Charlene, 43, who is married to Prince Albert of Monaco after she was rushed to hospital last week due to fainting following complications from a severe sinus infection.

She had earlier revealed that she was unable to fly back to Europe from South Africa, where she lived from the age of 12, due to the infection causing a problem with her ears.

“I cannot force healing, so I will be grounded in South Africa until the end of October,” she explained in an interview. “I cannot fly above 3000 metres, otherwise I’ll have a problem with my ears.”

Several weeks before collapsing, she underwent four hours of surgery for an undisclosed reason, and after her bout of fainting, palace officials say she is recovering. But there are concerns that her long-term separation from her children Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella is taking a heavy emotional toll on the fragile-looking princess.

Albert and the six-year-old twins have been to see her in South Africa twice since she’s been stranded there, and after the last visit, following her surgery, Charlene shared a series of family photos, saying, “I am so thrilled to have my family with me.”