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Trixie Mattel breaks down all the reasons behind her 3-month break
We now know the reasons why the RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 3 winner and Trixie Motel star is going away for a while.
Mama, don't make her put on the dress again… at least for a few months.
On Monday, July 15, Trixie Mattel shared a video opening up about the three-month break she's taking in 2024. According to the winner of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 3, this past year has been very challenging and even led her to develop an autoimmune disorder.
"It is not so fierce to work yourself to death. It is not so fierce to work yourself into an autoimmune disorder," Trixie explained in the video. "It is not so fierce to do so much drag as Trixie that, at a certain point, I literally started to feel like I was a Trixie impersonator. I was putting on the blonde wig, and the winged liner, and the little 60s dress and being like, 'Let's just get through the day.' [That] is not what this should be about."
Even though Trixie is very grateful for all the opportunities she's had in her career — which she highlights a few times throughout this video — she also talks about experiencing burnout. "And then [there are] so many people [who] make money off me and depend on me for income," the Trixie Motel star added. "When you're self-employed, or when people rely on you for money, (…) it is not their job to tell you when it's time to take a break, because that day will never come."
Trixie elaborated, "You have to advocate for yourself and speak up for yourself. Otherwise, you're not actually being a good work partner. You, as the professional that you are, are more valuable to tell the room, 'Hey, I really need that day off to recharge.' That's a good thing. It's a good thing to have boundaries about the way you need to take care of yourself. It's embarrassing to be 34, and have been self-employed this long, and [only] grasp these concepts now."
Trixie's breakout appearance on Drag Race season 7 was filmed in 2014 (10 years ago!) and subsequently aired in 2015. She then returned for All Stars 3 in 2018 (which she won) all while filming the documentary film Trixie Mattel: Moving Parts, which opened at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2019.
In subsequent years, Trixie launched a makeup company (Trixie Cosmetics), became the co-owner of a gay bar in Milwaukee (This Is It!), opened a hotel (Trixie Motel), hosted several seasons of The Pit Stop, was a main judge in two seasons of Queen of the Universe, released four studio albums, embarked on several world tours, filmed two seasons of Trixie Motel, published two books alongside Katya, appeared in digital series such as WOW Presents Plus' UNHhhh and Netflix's I Like to Watch, and ran her own YouTube channel.
Trixie further explained in this new video about taking a break:
"[Even] when you have the fortune that I've had, you shouldn't be stupid and abuse it like I have. I could've enjoyed some of the cool things I've gotten to do in the last 10 years without pushing myself to this point. I've pushed myself to people being like, 'Wow, Trixie, you're just everywhere. Your work ethic; you're a workhorse.' And [now] I'm like… it's okay to sleep, and eat food, and take a day off."
"I mean, it's funny always working with Katya, because she is a professional day-off taker," she continued. "I've had a hard time taking a day off. When I would take days off, I would do two-a-day exercising and then work on a wig all day. That's not a day off, you know? Obviously, my weird traumatized gay brain just cannot relax and cannot take a day off."
Trixie went on, "I'm not saying growing up rich is easy, but growing up poor can be very traumatizing. (…) But at a certain point, it's like, girl, if you're too tired or too overworked to show up and be your best, shut up and sit down and take a nap and let somebody else have that."
In conclusion, the Drag Race legend revealed that she was pushing herself to the point of feeling constantly "agitated, exhausted, and sick for no reason," noting that she struggled to "keep weight on" and warning fans that "stress is not a joke." Thus, at this point in time, Trixie has determined that she needs to go through a full reboot in her system.
Trixie reassured fans that her YouTube channel will continue to feature drag artists and makeup professionals. She will also appear in a few of those videos (which have been prerecorded), which means that fans shouldn't get their hopes up if Trixie pops up in a video in the next few weeks.
We totally support Trixie in taking this well-deserved break, and we'll be right here when she decides that it's time to come back!
Watch Trixie Mattel's full video below and make sure to subscribe to her YouTube channel, @trixie!
Bernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
Bernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
