Former 'Loose Woman' Andrea McLean has revealed she faced a near-death experience, being just 24 hours from death due to pneumonia and sepsis before being rushed to hospital. The 55-year-old TV presenter now sees her recovery as a second lease on life, emphasising the severity of her condition last year.
Opening up about her life-altering ordeal, Andrea disclosed: "I didn't realise how severe my illness was at the time. But the doctors had told my husband, Nick, that had I not got to hospital when I did, had we waited another 24 hours to call for help, I may not be here now."
The frightening episode unfolded the day after Boxing Day, following a persistent and severe flu. Recounting the incident, she explained: "I got up to go to the bathroom and just fell to the floor. By the time the paramedics arrived they said my blood pressure was so low they had to stabilise me before moving me."
Due to the layout of her home, with the bedroom situated in the loft, there was a struggle to evacuate her safely. However, despite this obstacle, she remembered: "Our bedroom is in the loft and they couldn't get the stretcher around the tight bend, but eventually I managed to slide down the stairs, and was rushed to hospital. What happened over the next few weeks changed my life forever."
Prior to this, Andrea had been contending with health issues, feeling unwell in the 18 months leading up to the dramatic Christmas period, reports the Mirror.
She recounts her ordeal: "I've had Covid three times and suffered long covid which left me perpetually exhausted and with an underlying weakness so I seemed to pick every little bug up. I haven't felt quite right for a very long time, so when my husband and daughter contracted that nasty flu going around in December, I of course caught it too.
"But it lingered with me. I just couldn't shift it, and it all came to a head the morning I fell to the floor. My blood pressure was 60/40 – it is still very low now – and I think my body just gave up."
She recalls being in and out of hospital throughout January, describing the period as a "blur".
Andrea continues: "It was only a few weeks after I got home that I realised the magnitude of what had happened – that if I hadn't gone into hospital that day, I may not be here now."
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Earlier this month, she experienced another scare, collapsing after getting out of bed 'too fast'. Andrea notes: "I am still not back to full strength, and my blood pressure is still very low. I recently had another fall – again the result of getting up too quickly. Unfortunately, this time I fell flat on my face and ended up sporting a bruiser of a black eye."
Reflecting on the lessons learned, she says the biggest takeaway from her experience has been a shift in perspective. She concludes: "There are rarely second chances in this life, so as I began to regain my strength I knew I had to seize the day and focus on what I really want to do.
"I very nearly died," Andrea confessed, adding that she needed to pay more attention to her body. "That scary, horrible moment was a turning point, it has led to now and I am feeling really positive about where I am going."
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English (United States) ·