Actor Ashton Kutcher has revealed that he previously fought a rare disease.
The 44-year-old appeared on an episode of National Geographic’s “Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge.”
Access Hollywood gave a first look at Monday night’s new episode where Kutcher opened up about his medical condition.
“Like two years ago, I had this weird, super rare form of vasculitis that like knocked out my vision, it knocked out my hearing. It knocked out all my equilibrium. It took me, like, a year to build it all back up,” Kutcher explained.
Vasculitis causes inflammation of the blood vessels, which can lead to organ and tissue damage.
This disease can affect anyone but with medication, flare-ups can be prevented and inflammation can be controlled in most types of vasculitis, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Watch the video below:
Kutcher said that “you don’t really appreciate it until it’s gone” and wondered if he would ever see, hear, or walk again.
“I’m lucky to be alive,” he told Grylls.
Continuing, he said, “The minute you start seeing your obstacles as things that are made for you, to give you what you need, then life starts to get fun, right? You start surfing on top of your problems instead of living underneath them.”
Grylls shared his thoughts on Kutcher’s admission, saying, “Hearing Ashton’s story on his autoimmune disease, that’s a terrifying journey, but it’s also part of why he’s strong and resilient.”
On Monday, Kutcher gave an update on his health on Twitter, writing, “Before there are a bunch of rumors/ chatter/ whatever out there. Yes, I had a rare vasculitis episode 3yrs ago. (Autoimmune flair up) I had some impairments hear, vision, balance issues right after. I fully recovered. All good. Moving on. See you at the 2022 NY Marathon w/Thorn.”
