[imagesource:twitter/derekwatts]

Shame, Derek Watts hasn’t been doing so well lately.

What was a suspected stroke turned out to be a severe case of sepsis that left the veteran Carte Blanche reporter tubed up in a hospital bed.

On April 2, he posted a selfie while recovering at Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg, letting his fans know that he was alright despite how bad he looked. That image is up top. I know, he looks really rof.

“Destroyed the bod in an hour (sic),” Watts said of the damage the sepsis caused, adding that he was “learning to walk again” as a result.

Watts recently gave an update to News24, explaining that he made his diagnosis public because people were concerned about why he was not on the air and asking where he was:

“I generally don’t like to say a lot about myself, but I thought, in this case, I had to say what was going on and how serious sepsis can be.”

He went on to say that learning about sepsis has been an “interesting journey” because he has “never really heard” of it and “wasn’t sure what it was all about”:

“And then suddenly I got hit, as you know, and I was man down. I can honestly say I’ve never been so weak in my life after that first attack when I was shaking and just couldn’t get out of a car, you know. It was quite weird to happen in, like, I don’t know, half an hour.”

Watts was on a family trip in Hoedspruit at the time and had no idea that he would end up fighting for his life in the hospital two days later:

“Sunday morning, I went for a bit of a walk, and I got back, and I was shaking a bit and probably was out of sorts, but still wanted to take my son quadbike riding and then while we were out there, I just had no power.”

Watts says his son noticed something was wrong, and that’s when they made the decision to call a paramedic.

“They examined me, and I can’t remember everything because I was feeling a bit out of it then, but they said, ‘You’ve had a stroke.’ And that’s when they decided I had to get to Milpark as soon as possible,” Watts explains.

After rigorous testing, the doctors found no evidence of a stroke or any heart problems, and thus “turned the investigation to sepsis”:

Watts reveals that doctors are still working out “how” he got sepsis, adding that it could have been due to any cuts or open wounds that became infected; however, the presenter had none.

“They’re not absolutely sure how I got it. But I think the drive now is to actually find the right antibiotics and counter it.”

He said that the infection is difficult “in many ways” and isn’t as simple as getting the drugs you need and going back to work in a couple of weeks.

Huge thanks to the incredible #CarteBlanche team for filling in for this “small” fellow recovering from Sepsis.

Back home four days and now walking unsupported for short distances. 😊

Really appreciated all the messages from
viewers. You are the stars ⭐️ of the show! pic.twitter.com/iIDkd4TReX

— Derek Watts (@DerekWatts) April 2, 2023

After his diagnosis, Watts had been home for four days and was “walking unsupported for short distances”. Then, on Tuesday, the investigative journalist was back in the hospital:

“To be honest, I’m back in hospital, but just for two days. I moved in this morning. And so, the reason is just [to do] a few more tests to isolate some of the problems with the sepsis. And to have a small procedure,” he tells News24.

He has reassured everyone that he is feeling better and stronger and getting the exercise he needs from his physio.

The main thing now for a full recovery is finding the right antibiotic, exercising enough but not too much that it strains his heart, and breathing correctly – “from his diaphragm rather than his clavicle”.

Everyone is looking forward to having you back for our regular Sunday night Carte Blanche screening.

[source:news24]