Joe Manganiello is giving fans a shocking look at the health battle he kept private for years, and his fiancée, Caitlin O’Connor, is showing him love.
© TheStewartofNYOn Thursday, the True Blood actor shared a series of graphic photos documenting his seven-year struggle with a mysterious autoimmune illness on Thursday, October 15.
The images show Manganiello during a hospital stay, after major abdominal surgery and while dealing with severe skin conditions that plagued him throughout his illness.
© GettyO’Connor, who is engaged to the actor, showed her support in the comments section, writing, “I love you.”
The actor accompanied the photos with a trigger warning before explaining the circumstances behind each image. In the first picture, Manganiello is seen sitting shirtless in a hospital chair, with medical equipment surrounding him.
“In the days following the amputation of my large intestine, my weight began to plummet,” he wrote. “I would ultimately lose a total of 60 lbs during the two weeks following the surgery.
© Getty ImagesThe second image offers a closer look at his abdomen following another procedure to reconnect his digestive tract and remove his ostomy bag.
The third shows his face covered in red marks and rashes, which he said were among the many skin conditions he experienced during his illness.
“My skin, an immune organ, was stricken with just about every condition known to man, usually in combination,” he explained. The photos are a stark contrast to the muscular physique that helped make Manganiello a Hollywood heartthrob.
© GettyJoe Manganiello’s seven-year health battle nearly killed him
Manganiello has revealed that his health struggles began during a period when his career and personal life appeared to be thriving. Despite undergoing countless medical tests and trying different treatments, doctors struggled to identify the cause of his symptoms, which included severe abdominal pain, fevers, fatigue, rashes, and ulcers in his digestive tract.
© GettyIn 2016, his condition reached a critical point, leading to emergency surgery. Doctors discovered that his large intestine was severely infected and septic, forcing them to remove it to save his life.
The procedure left him with an ostomy bag as he began a long and difficult recovery. The actor later described the experience as one of the most challenging periods of his life, revealing that he was unsure whether he would survive from one day to the next.
During an interview with ABC News’ Nightline, Manganiello reflected on how his physical appearance masked the severity of what he was experiencing. “I know that people look at me and they think that I had been given every advantage possible in life and that it must be easy for me,” he said. “But what they didn't know is that, you know, I was struggling with something very, very human.”
He also spoke candidly about the emotional toll of his illness, including suicidal thoughts and his fear of taking powerful pain medication because of his history of alcoholism and addiction.
The health crisis affected more than his physical well-being. Manganiello has said the experience took a toll on his career, his relationships, and his hopes of becoming a father.
Manganiello has since said his autoimmune issues are in remission and that he has been symptom-free for more than three years. In his memoir, he credits his former wife, Sofía Vergara, with making the decision that saved his life when doctors needed permission to perform the emergency surgery.
He has also discussed how the illness affected their marriage, which ended in divorce in 2023.
Vergara has not publicly responded to all of the claims made in the book. Her son, Manolo Gonzalez Vergara, recently shared a post about narcissistic men that drew attention amid the renewed scrutiny of the former couple's relationship.
