Former ‘AGT’ winner Michael Grimm admitted to ICU with mystery illness, wife says
Former "America's Got Talent" winner Michael Grimm has been hospitalized with a mystery illness, according to his wife, Lucie Zolcerova Grimm.
Zolcerova Grimm revealed June 6 in a tearful video on Grimm's social media pages that the musician had been placed on a ventilator in an ICU because of an unknown illness that caused him to experience mobility issues, among other symptoms.
"It’s been an emotional ride," she told fans.
"I know you all love Michael and while I want to protect his privacy and his request to not disclose anything, we’re kind of in a situation,” said Zolcerova Grimm.
“For those of you who have been out to see Michael in the last couple of months, you may have noticed that he was struggling with his health a lot, lacking energy and not being able to fulfill shows,” she continued.
"We ended up taking him to the hospital, to the ER, to the doctors. Still couldn't figure out what was going on with him," she said.
The musician's condition worsened on Memorial Day, she said. "He was looking increasingly sickly. All of a sudden, he could barely walk, couldn't lift his head. He couldn't respond right away to me when I would ask him things. He would be really fuzzy," Zolcerova Grimm explained, adding that she rushed him to the ER because she feared he was "having a stroke."
"That wasn't the case, luckily," she added.
Grimm's condition eventually forced him to talk in "gibberish" and to experience physical tremors, his wife told fans. His blood pressure was also "skyrocketing."
Grimm was taken to an ICU where he was "heavily" sedated and placed on a ventilator so he wouldn't "stroke out" or "flatline," said Zolcerova Grimm.
“The good news is that the doctors were finally able to remove the ventilator today, and he is breathing on his own,” she continued. "So he's doing good."
“However, due to the last week, his body went through a lot. And they do still have him sedated so that he doesn’t seize or flatline from the fluctuating blood pressure," she went on.
Zolcerova Grimm explained that many of Grimm's upcoming performances have been canceled to allow him time to heal. She noted that he was still not fully conscious, and that he currently "has no voice" and will have to undergo vocal cord repair.
"I’m asking all the fans to be patient, please,” she said, adding, “Keep Michael in their prayers, in their minds and their hearts.”
"No need to panic. He has a great team of doctors and nurses working around the clock to figure all this out and get him back to full health," she said toward the end of the video.
Grimm won Season Five of "AGT" on Sept. 15, 2010.
Days later, Grimm proposed to Zolcerova Grimm during an appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show."
“She’s been there for me. Once you find that good woman you hang on to her,” Grimm told host Ellen DeGeneres at the time.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com