‘The Challenge’ star Nelson Thomas says he’s ‘truly blessed’ after having his right foot amputated earlier this week.
The amputation comes a year after he survived a near-fatal DUI crash.
via Page Six:
The MTV personality has been documenting his journey online to serve as cautionary tale for others.
“I’m truly blessed!!!” he wrote Friday over a TikTok video taken just moments after his surgery on March 5.
Thomas, 35, candidly showed off his amputated leg in the clip as medics wrapped it in bandages.
“I’m already talking to a coach about the [Paralympics] on August 24,” the athlete proudly gushed, as the doctor responded that it would be a “miracle” but that he believed Thomas could do it.
“Oh, I’m ready,” the veteran reality competition show contestant responded.
Thomas wrote in the caption of the clip, “The moment I moved my knee for the first time, witnessing it in person, was truly remarkable.”
The TV star then shared an update in another TikTok video Friday, writing alongside it, “Im home ????”
He appeared in good spirits as he joked, “At least they let me keep my good foot, right?”
His mom appeared beside him in the clip and Thomas thanked God for helping him get through it all.
“It was a hard three days,” he admitted. “The first two days I was in a lot of pain. Walking into that hospital, I was very scared, but I had my loved ones with me.”
Thomas then delve into some of the medical advice he was given to make sure he stays healthy, including taking pills, moving his leg around so that it doesn’t get “stiff” and keeping it elevated.
“Trust me, people, it is weird,” he said of how it feels no longer having a right foot. “I still don’t know how I feel but, right now, I’m home and I’m happy and that’s all that matters.”
The reality star concluded, “I’m just going to take it day by day and we’ll see how things go.”
Thomas first revealed in February that he would have to undergo an amputation after months of trying to heal his right foot with other methods — that ultimately were not giving him a good quality of life.
“March 5th 2023 remains vivid in my memory, a persistent presence in my thoughts. I consciously embrace it as the initiation of a new chapter,” he wrote on Instagram at the time.
“Opting for amputation, I am determined to own March 5th and redefine its significance in my life.”
On March 5, 2023, Thomas lost control of his Audi A4 and slammed into a bridge in Austin, Texas, causing his car to burst into flames.
A few weeks after his fiery crash, he shared gruesome photos from the accident that revealed his vehicle had been burnt to a crisp.
The “Are You the One?” star also took an opportunity at the time to thank Minnesota Vikings player K.J. Osborn, who was “on the scene” of the crash, and helped save him from the burning car.
Thomas spent time in the hospital and was seen in photos with an IV in one arm, bandages and an oxygen tube in his nose. However, he did not yet know at the time what his full recovery journey entailed.
Six months after the crash, Thomas was arrested for a DUI, as he had admitted to consuming two to three “mixed alcoholic drinks” when police arrived on the scene. He later posted $5,000 bond.
We wish him the best in his recovery.
