Loose Women’s Andrea McLean had a terrifying start to the year as she was rushed to hospital after collapsing at home. The 55 year old presenter revealed that she was “in a lot of pain” following her diagnosis with severe pneumonia, acute kidney injury and sepsis. Speaking about the scary ordeal, Andrea, who hosted Loose Women until 2020, shared how she “collapsed in the bathroom” and “lay there for an hour before my husband [Nick Feeney] found me.” Writing on her blog online, Andrea recalled: “We rang the GP who told us to call 999 immediately. The ambulance team were amazing. My blood pressure was so low I couldn’t stand, and I was in a lot of pain. To be honest, I was barely aware of what was happening, other than trying to be helpful.”
Former Loose Women presenter Andrea McLean has revealed that she was rushed to hospital after collapsing at home
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“Our bedroom is in the loft, up a steep, narrow flight of stairs, which meant the stretcher couldn’t turn, so getting me out was challenging. We eventually got out the house, and I can now say with confidence that travelling in the back of an ambulance isn’t as much fun as you think it would be.” Andrea continued: “I can’t remember much about A&E other than it was thorough. Questions, scans, lots of needles, and possibly the most painful insertion of a catheter ever experienced. Then my X-ray and CT scans came back. I had severe pneumonia, Acute Kidney Injury and sepsis. Things happened quickly; drips, super-strong antibiotics via IV and orally, and I was transferred to the Emergency Assessment Ward”, reports the Mirror.
Andrea recalled her scary health battle and hospital dash
(Image: (Image: Getty))
She had a two-night hospital stay and Andrea described her “sensory overload” while there sharing: “[It was] a sensory overload with the screams, shouting and sound and smell of poo from people losing control of their bowels.” After learning she had lost 80% capacity in one of her lungs, medics prescribed her morphine. Her husband, Nick, visited her on the ward twice daily, accompanied by their daughter, providing much-needed emotional support. Although now discharged, Andrea confessed that her life is still significantly impacted. She admitted she “still hates January”, stating: “It’s now February, and I’m still not well enough to handle normal stuff like getting up and rushing out the door to do the jobs I’d been booked to do, because every part of that process would end with me falling down, or at the very least sitting on a tube station floor feeling very unwell and embarrassed at the stares.” “I’m still having ‘funny turns’ while out for a walk, or attempting the mildest of exercise.” She concluded: “It means I haven’t really started 2025 yet.” On Instagram, Andrea thanked her followers for their well wishes as she wrote: “Thank you for all your kind comments! I’m feeling a lot better than I did, (it really was pretty awful) xx.”
