Dan Patrick believes he’s on the other side. And he’s ready to talk about the daily horrors he’s dealt with for seven years.
The host of the syndicated “Dan Patrick Show” revealed a health battle that began with extreme pain that left him fighting to get out of bed, then transitioned and got more complicated the more he tried to treat it — until a recent breakthrough.
“What I have is called polymyalgia rheumatica,” Patrick said on his show Thursday. “… Intense joint pain. If anybody’s ever had this, you’ll understand. It’s like having the flu and you’re not nauseous.”
The former ESPN star sportscaster said he “woke up one Saturday morning and I couldn’t tie my shoes. I couldn’t walk. It was joint pain, both hands, both shoulders, both hips, both knees. Even a tooth I had replaced I could feel pain — every single morning.”
The temporary solution was prednisone, a drug that alleviated much of the pain but came with side effects that the 62-year-old could barely live with.
Prednisone “is wonderful but it’s horrible,” he said. “… I was depressed, I had suicidal thoughts, I was emotional, I’d cry for no reason, the smallest things.”
Eventually, Patrick entered a trial at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. To his alarm and great relief, he was offered light chemo IVs once a month that have eliminated both the prednisone and much of the pain.
But even as the past troubles subside, more emerge. He described a “brain fog” that now frequently engulfs him, particularly difficult for a person who’s paid to think and talk publicly.
“I couldn’t remember Albert Pujols’ name last week,” Patrick said. “Couldn’t for the life of me during the show.
“I had a dinner with my wife and my daughter last month. And I texted her the next day because I couldn’t remember the dinner.”
Patrick thanked his staff for helping him along and listeners for their patience and loyalty. The treatments will continue through September.