Magic Mike star Joe Manganiello has revealed details of a secret, seven-year health battle that ended in life-saving amputation.
Manganiello opened up about a near-decade long struggle with a mysterious illness that left him in chronic pain and took him around the world searching for answers. It ultimately resulted in a life-saving amputation.
The 49-year-old actor, best known for Magic Mike and True Blood, announced he will be releasing a memoir about the experience later this year.
In an Instagram post, Manganiello described it as “an untold story of survival,” adding that his search for answers took him “from death’s door, around the globe, and back through time.”
A cascade of illness doctors couldn’t explain
According to The Sun, Manganiello’s condition involved a series of autoimmune-related illnesses affecting multiple parts of his body, including his skin, thyroid, eyes, lungs and digestive system. Doctors were initially unable to identify the cause, leaving him to seek answers elsewhere.
His search took him to shamans, pagan rituals, ancient myths and long-lost family records, as well as a rediscovery of his own spirituality.
“It was the most brutally difficult time of my life, one I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy, but also my greatest adventure,” he told People magazine.
“The process of writing this book gave me the gift of perspective that helped me to see that my suffering was a cocoon from which I would emerge forever changed.”
Manganiello’s book, Bloodlines, is available for pre-order now and will be released on October 13.
The announcement comes nearly three years after his high-profile split from Sofia Vergara. The couple divorced in 2023 after seven years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences. Manganiello is now dating actress Caitlin O’Connor, while Vergara went public with her relationship with businessman Douglas Chabbott last December.
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