Sam Vanderpump revealed that he had a near-death experience over Christmas.
The Made in Chelsea star, 28 – who is the nephew of Vanderpump and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Lisa Vanderpump – recalled his “terrifying” ordeal that saw him rushed to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
Sam “nearly died” after liver and kidney failure caused his stomach to swell and caused life-threatening sepsis.
Fortunately, Sam made it to the recovery department after his girlfriend Alice Yaxley called an ambulance – a move doctors told him saved his life. If he had waited another 24 hours to receive treatment, it would have been too late.
Although Sam was born with liver and kidney disease, he lay dormant until he came down with the flu in December, along with asthma, and his organs were struggling to cope.
Sam said mail:’I thought I was going to die. I didn’t think my body could cope and that was the scariest thing. It was terrifying.
“I remember the doctor told me that I would suffer from liver and kidney failure. I burst into tears.
He continued: “The words they used to describe my liver function were ‘dysfunctional’ and ‘diabolical’.”
When they stopped working, Sam’s heart raced, and his pancreas and spleen suffered as well.
“And you could feel all this pain and discomfort, I was really fighting to keep myself alive. I didn’t think I would survive or be seen outside of the hospital again,” he said.
“You never think that the flu will result in you being in a hospital bed and almost dying. They told my mom that if she had gotten to the hospital 24 to 48 hours later, she wouldn’t have made it. By calling the ambulance, my friend literally saved my life.
“They told me I was the sickest patient on the ward,” he added.
The reality TV star also developed jaundice, where his skin and the whites of his eyes turned yellow.
Another horrific consequence of kidney failure was that his body would not absorb water, leaving Sam’s stomach – which normally contains a ‘six pack’ – bloated with fluid as if he were pregnant.
“At one point, they wanted to stick a needle in me to drain the water but fortunately my kidneys started working,” he recalled, revealing that throughout the 15-day ordeal, he lost 15kg, describing it as the most “traumatic” experience of his life. life.
Sam says doctors are “75% sure” that his flu caused his immune system to weaken and the disease to spread.
Financial App MD is the youngest son of Mark and Simon Vanderpump, and has an older brother named Jack.
Businessman and DJ Mark – who was Lisa Vanderpump’s older brother – died in 2018 at the age of 59 due to suicide.
Lisa spoke about her struggle to cope in the wake of Mark’s death on reality show Vanderpump Rules.
And while Sam was released from hospital on Christmas Eve, he will take the experience into every aspect of his life – including Made in Chelsea.
Sam pledges to spread awareness about the health issues that have affected him and highlight the charities that help keep the E4 show going.
The star also thanked everyone for their support on social media, and also shared that his injury is gone and he is “hopefully on the road to a full recovery.”
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