After experiencing two near-death events in his life, Kim Atienza has since committed to leading a healthy lifestyle.

During the launch of his latest endorsement with Watsons Philippines’ #SwitchAndSave campaign held last August 13, 2022, the 55-year-old GMA-7 host looked back on these life-changing experiences.

The first happened in August 2010, after he suffered from a stroke.

The Tiktoclock: Happy Hour Na host blamed it on his unhealthy habits at that time.

He recalled, “I was in politics kasi for many years e. For 12 years, I was in politics. In 2004, I shifted to television. When I got into television, I was so in love with the work.

“I was like at three… or four shows. And one show is an early morning show. First season ako ng Umagang Kay Ganda, e, in ABS-CBN.

“I was so in love with the work and I thought the fitness that I had in the 80s would take it through.

“I used to be a body builder in the 80s, e. So akala ko, since fit naman ako nung 80s, ngayon, nandiyan pa iyan, which is a fallacy. It’s not true.”

HOW KIM ATIENZA RECOVERED FROM STROKE

Kuya Kim is grateful that his stroke did not leave permanent damage on him physically, and that he was able to recover from this traumatic experience.

“The stroke hit the left frontal lobe of my brain and nothing happened to me physically. But my mind got erased. Parang na-hard reset na computer.

“But through God’s grace, I was praying to the Lord, I made a deal with the Lord.

“I said, ‘If you make me well, I will be the best Kim I can be. I will be the healthiest Kim I can be. And He made me well.”

He added, “After three days, I got everything… [like] 70 percent back. And then, the 30 percent, I had to rehab.

“So I became a runner, I became a cyclist, then I got back to swimming, then I became a triathlete. I did the part of my deal with the Lord.”

Kuya Kim pointed out that many stroke survivors become afraid of exercising as they fear having another stroke attack.

But the Kapuso host encouraged others to exercise for a holistic approach to healthy living.

He explained, “It’s very normal for stroke survivors to fear another stroke from happening. And a lot of stroke survivors are actually paralyzed by that fear.

“And what happens is they get weaker and weaker and they suffer another stroke.

“Maraming stroke survivors, takot mag-exercise, e, sa paniniwalang ang pag-e-exercise ay magiging sanhi ng isa na namang stroke.”

HOW KIM ATIENZA BATTLED GUILLAIN-BARRE SYNDROME

In 2013, two years after he recovered from a stroke, Kuya Kim had another health scare. He suffered from the life-threatening Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS).

According to MayoClinic.org, GBS is “a rare disorder in which your body’s immune system attacks your nerves.”

Kuya Kim recalled, “It’s a very rare disorder that affects 1 out of 200,000 people. The reason? Nobody knows the reason. It causes total paralysis.

“So I felt the paralysis happening in my feet and then it happened in my hands.

“Being a stroke survivor, I went to my doctor and I told her, ‘Is this another stroke that’s happening, Doc? Because I can’t move my fingers and I can’t move my feet.’”

While he was able to beat this condition, Kuya Kim said the recovery period was very expensive.

He recounted, “The doctor told me, ‘Kim, we know that you’re of means, alam naman namin may kaya kayo. But we just want to let you know that it’s gonna be very expensive… The medicine we’re using will be very expensive.’

“Sabi ko, ‘Doc, how expensive?’

“‘One of these medicines is called IVIG or Immunoglobulin. It will cost… what’s your weight ba? 155? About PHP300,000 to PHP500,000 a day.’

“Sabi ko, ‘How many days, Doc?’ ‘Maybe around 10 days.’

“So imagine, if you’re a poor person and you get sick with Guillain-Barré Syndrome, yun na… Because ultimately, your diaphragm gets paralyzed. When your diaphragm gets paralyzed, you’re not able to breathe.

“When you’re not able to breathe, you die.”

Even after his treatment, Kuya Kim had to take Vitamin B-complex supplements for his nerves to get better.

“After my GBS, I was required by the doctor to take Vitamin B complex. For the whole year, I was [taking] in high dosage of Vitamin B complex for my nerves to get back to what it was.

“Because GBS is a nerve disorder. It’s an autoimmune disease that affects the nerves. So yung immune system mo, it’s attacking the virus.

“Instead of attacking the virus, it attacks your nerves and your immune system will not stop until all your nerves are dead. That’s why you end up paralyzed and you end up dead.”

SPIRITUAL HEALING

Aside from his physical recovery, what’s more important for Kuya Kim is the spiritual healing process that happened to him.

He said, “The more important healing that took place was I accepted Jesus Christ, our Lord Savior.

“The third day in ICU, I was crying to the Lord, ‘Lord, you gave me a stroke, and then you made me well…

“Now, I’m at the fittest point in my life and I’m ready to join my first Iron Man triathlon, you made me paralyzed. What is it that You want from me?’

“And then, it dawned on me. I was relying on my power alone.

“You know, the motto of Iron Man is ‘I can… I can swim, I can bike, I can run.’ It was on my T-shirt, it was on my phone, it was the wallpaper on my phone… only to realize when I was getting paralyzed and waiting to get intubated in the ICU that there’s not I can do, that I can… That only God can.

“That is when I said I want to get to know more about my Lord and my Savior Jesus Christ. And I’ve become a Born Again since 2013.”