The Challenge star Nelson Thomas is continuing on his road to recovery, and after laying low for a bit, he returned to social media to share an update with friends and fans.
As Monsters and Critics previously reported, Nelson was in a scary car accident last month in Texas, which involved his car catching fire.
He was saved from the burning wreck by a group of individuals driving nearby and saw the car. That group included NFL player KJ Osborn, his Uber driver, and some of Osborn’s friends. The football star later appeared on the news for saving a man from the wreck a week before Nelson revealed he was the one in the car.
As a result of the crash and being pulled from the burning wreck, Nelson suffered some brutal injuries, as he revealed on his official Instagram.
The Challenge star previously shared images that showed severe burns and cuts on his arms and legs. His injuries resulted in hospitalization and multiple surgeries, which he’s still undergoing based on his latest update.
In a video shared from his hospital bed, The Challenge star gave an update on what’s been going on with him as far as his surgeries and recovery at the hospital. He revealed he had just had his fourth or fifth surgery, but a “big one” was coming Saturday.
The Challenge’s Nelson shares an update about his upcoming surgery
In his latest video update, Nelson explained that his next surgery would involve closing up his leg with a “skin muscle graft” performed. He said the first two surgeries he had, they were hoping to use the skin that was there. However, that skin “was dead and not closing.”
He said he was lucky he returned to the ER last Sunday as they discovered a minor infection, and since things weren’t healing, you could see his plate through the open wound.
Nelson then removed the bandage wrapped around his leg to show where they’d perform the muscle graft and close things up. A significant mark extended down from his thigh toward his knee.
In addition, Nelson had a tube going into his leg, which he revealed was a vacuum to remove toxins from his blood and help things “heal a lot faster.”
“That’s tomorrow’s procedure. We’re gonna finally close this up. Where does the skin muscle graft go? Here,” he shared in his video, revealing his badly injured ankle on his other leg, which had a swollen look with scars.
“The doctors said this is one of the best skin muscle graft surgeries they’ve ever seen,” Nelson said, revealing more of his injuries.
He said it’d been one of the “toughest injuries” he’s ever had to endure, with some “dark moments” being in the hospital.
He said sometimes he feels like a “caged animal ready to jump out” or like he’s “in prison.”
“I’m not gonna get all emotional on y’all but it’s been hard. I wanna just thank y’all for all the DMs, keeping me in prayers, and just being with me through this journey,” he said.
“Thank you to my friends, my fans, and my family. I love y’all, and let’s pray that my surgery goes good tomorrow,” Nelson said.
The Challenge stars show support for Nelson’s recovery
Following Nelson’s latest update to Instagram, several of his current and former castmates stopped by the comments section to show their support. They included former Double Agents rookie Mechie Harris, Challenge OG Derrick Kosinski, and Nelson’s Ride or Dies castmates Jay Starrett and Ravyn Rochelle.
“God Makes No Mistakes! You Gonna Bounce Back 10 Time Stronger!” Mechie wrote.
“Stay strong Nelson!” Derrick commented while Jay left his castmate several emojis, including a heart to show love.
Nelson’s Ride or Dies castmate Ravyn also shared that she dreamed of Nelson’s successful recovery, which had him “training, running, smiling & happy.”
“Keep fighting & staying strong!! Better days are coming,” she wrote, along with several flexing arm muscle emojis.
The Challenge: World Championship episodes arrive Wednesdays on Paramount Plus.