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Ben Askren made his first public comments on Wednesday following double lung transplant surgery after he was initially hospitalized with severe pneumonia.
The retired UFC fighter and former Bellator champion was awake at various moments during his hospitalization, but his wife Amy Askren said that he was largely unconscious as doctors tried to save his life. Ultimately, Askren received the double lung transplant he needed and now he’s awake and responsive again and addressing his health publicly for the first time.
“I just read through my wife’s journal because I don’t remember anything from May 28 to July 2,” Askren revealed in a video posted to Instagram. “No recollection. No idea. No idea what happened. I just read through my wife’s journals and it’s like a movie. It’s ridiculous.”
While his memory is obviously foggy at best, Askren revealed that his heart actually stopped several times as doctors battled to save him.
He also lost a tremendous amount of weight while hospitalized before eventually getting the double lung transplant surgery.
“I only died four times where the ticker stopped for about 20 seconds,” Askren said. “That’s not ideal. But I got the double lung transplant. I made it out the other side of it. Gaining quite a bit of strength, learning to use everything again.
“I was actually on the scale yesterday — 147 pounds. I haven’t been 147 pounds since I was 15 years old. So that’s like 50 pounds [lost] in a 45-day period. That was a battle. I don’t remember most of it.”
Askren’s recovery is still underway and he didn’t reveal how long he would have to remain in the hospital following his lung transplant surgery. Typical recovery takes months but the biggest danger comes in the first few days after surgery where patients are at the risk of infection or rejection.
The veteran fighter and 2008 Olympic wrestler also addressed the numerous messages and outpouring of support he received while hospitalized.
“The thing that was most impactful to me was all the love I felt from everybody,” Askren said. “It was almost like I got to have my own funeral. I still remember 30 years ago, Dave Schultz died, you would listen to all these older people recollect, and how much they enjoyed him, how much they loved him, and obviously he never got to hear that. The outpouring of love from the wrestling community is just amazing. It felt so good.
“I love you guys. I appreciate you guys. It’s been tough, not only on me but my whole family and my close community. I appreciate everything.”