Joe Manganiello opens up about being 'heavily medicated' for years amid health battle

Joe Manganiello is sharing more details about a deadly illness that he's been fighting for the better part of a decade. Earlier this week, Manganiello revealed he was publishing a memoir called "Bloodlines," discussing a disease that has been affecting his life for the past decade.

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In a new video shared on his social media, Manganiello is sharing more details. "Some of you may know, yesterday PEOPLE.com announced that I had written a new memoir, and I just wanted to take a few moments to talk about that a little bit," he said in the clip. 

"For the better part of the past decade — most people don't know this — but I suffered in silence, battling a deadly mystery illness, and other than a very small circle of family and friends, I hid it from the rest of the world, and until recently hadn't really shared what I'd gone through," he continued.

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Despite being in contact with some of the best doctors in the world, Manganiello didn't have any answers for his condition, resulting in numerous surgeries that worsened the quality of his life. "I spent months and months heavily medicated while dealing with excruciating bouts of chronic pain,"  he said.

It took him three years to finish writing his book, which explores his seven-year journey with his disease, which triggered many autoimmune responses that greatly affected his quality of life. He also explores his family history and the discoveries he made through the process. 

According to the book synopsis, the disease struck when Manganiello was going through one of the best times in his life, with his career flourishing and his marriage beginning. He married Sofia Vergara in 2015, with the two getting a divorce in 2023. 

Manganiello reveals the most challenging moment in his life

In a statement to PEOPLE, Manganiello discussed his illness and how challenging it was to live through. "It was the most brutally difficult time of my life, one I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, but also my greatest adventure," he said. 

"I hope that what I went through on this journey can give readers hope that answers and healing may lie for them on the other side of whatever they are fighting through. The process of writing this book gave me the gift of perspective that helped me to see that my suffering was a cocoon from which I would emerge forever changed."

"Bloodlines" will be released on October 13.

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