“Flip or Flop” star Tarek El Moussa wants people to know how “absolutely sick” he was when he battled testicular cancer while also treating thyroid cancer.
“I thought I would share this with everyone … to truly understand how absolutely sick I was … look at this photo and look at my eyes, I was a skeleton,” El Moussa, 35, captioned a photo of himself on Instagram on Thursday.
“This took a major toll on my physical and mental health. I know many of my fans have had similar struggles and can relate. The last 3 years were the hardest of my life, I look back and still wonder how I survived,” he wrote. “I never quit although I wanted to thousands of times all day every day. This is from hurting my back after battling 2 cancers.. I had a 60 pound weight swing from my illnesses. I’m proud to say I didn’t quit and I’m in the best shape of my life!! ”
Though El Moussa is out of the woods in terms of his health, the last three years also included a bitter separation from his wife of seven years, “Flip or Flop” partner Christina, which he partially blamed on his medical woes.
The pair first called it quits in May 2016, when police seized guns from their shared home after the couple got into a heated argument. They later called the incident “an unfortunate misunderstanding.” Tarek filed for divorce from Christina, who moved on with contractor Gary Anderson, in January 2017.