Eamonn Holmes is taking a break from presenting to undergo back surgery he is praying will help restore him to the “man he used to be”.
Eamonn Holmes is taking a break from presenting to undergo back surgery he is praying will help restore him to the ‘man he used to be’
The former This Morning host, 62, told fans surgeons will operate to relieve pressure on his sciatic nerves.
He said in his column for Express.co.uk on Tuesday (27.09.22): “This week a surgeon will cut into my back to hopefully relieve pressure on my sciatic nerves.
“It’s an operation that carries a 20% risk of going wrong, but such is the pain and restrictions that I have been suffering for the past 18 months, I’ve decided it is a risk I am willing to take.
“In fact, it’s a risk I want to take because, at this moment in time, nothing could seem worse than the constant pain that runs through my lower back and legs.
“Yet, in many ways, I am fortunate. However horrible the pain is at times, there are lots of other people out there who have it far worse than I do. I know this because they write to me every day on social media and tell me how they are getting on or, in a lot of cases, how much they are suffering.”
Dad-of-four Eamonn, who shares one his children with second wife Ruth Langsford, 62, added he was “sorry” Britain had a “pain epidemic” with millions of people “crying out” in agony from their conditions.
He said: “I’m sorry to say we have a pain epidemic in this country. Millions of people – regardless of their age and status – are literally crying out in pain.
“Their reasons vary, but the pain they feel doesn’t. It can be linked to genetics, it might be linked to accidents, or down to their age. Sometimes it's wear and tear.
“The list goes on – yet so does their agony. That agony comes in different forms – it can be muscular, breakages, nerves, infection, and, the one that’s not talked about enough – the mental suffering linked to chronic pain.”
Eamonn added the times when he has reached out on social media during his periods of extreme pain the response has been “off the scale” and “overwhelming”.
His admissions come after he was rushed to hospital earlier this year for “unexpected” emergency treatment on his back.
Eamonn also suffered a slipped disk in his back last year in a freak accident, and has told how sleep has been his “escape” from agony.
He added in his Express column he is praying “God will guide my surgeon’s hand this week and help me get back to the man I used to be”.
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