“It hurt to breathe. When I wanted to fill my lungs, I felt pain. I felt many, many pinches. It was on the right leg, it was on the left leg,” says Safadão.
The crisis happened in the early hours of June 25 in the dressing room before a show at the Recôncavo Baiano.
His spine was blocked four years ago. At that time he noticed that two intervertebral discs, which serve to cushion the spine, were damaged with a bulge in the lumbar area. This time, the contents of one of these discs exited and entered the canal within the spine that carries the nerves that reach the legs and pelvis. That’s why Safadão felt so much pain.
The doctor performed a procedure called blocking. He injected drugs and applied highfrequency current to the site of the injury to relieve pain. Two days later, Wesley felt better and decided to return to the stage.
“I post a photo on social media and say, ‘Guys, today there’s a show in Caruaru, in Pernambuco, in São João de Caruaru’. When I post the photo I couldn’t feel my legs anymore so I grabbed the stairs. I kind of went down through my arms, supporting, supporting. And it was the first time I didn’t feel any tenderness in my testicles. Here I put my hand here, he said. ‘Oh my god, I don’t feel anything,'” Wesley recalls.
🎧 Listen to the This is Fantastic podcast on what has affected Safadão:
Extra vertebrae in the lumbar spine
About 90% of cases of herniated discs are treated with rest and physical therapy. But Wesley is no ordinary guy… Not even in the skeleton. He has an extra vertebra in his lumbar spine. Something that only 15% of people have. This sixth lumbar vertebra narrows the channel that nerves travel through, increasing the chance of being hit. That’s what happened to the singer. Therefore, he did not respond to traditional treatment. Safadão had to have an operation. Etc.
Six days after the surgery, the Fantastic team found Wesley at his home. He has been living in the greater São Paulo area, almost three thousand kilometers from Fortaleza, since January. At the family farm nearby, Wesley learned he was going to have surgery.
“I was starting to get such a bad feeling. “Will this be my last lunch on the farm? Didn’t I come to the farm to say goodbye to my children?’” the singer recalls.
1 of 1 Wesley Safadão and Ernesto Paglia — Photo: Fantastic
Wesley Safadão and Ernesto Paglia — Photo: Fantastic
Safadão’s recovery depends on something he doesn’t usually do: walk slowly. Something almost impossible for people from Ceará who do 20, 30 shows a month all over Brazil and produce and coordinate most of them. but It’s time to hit the brakes.
Wesley underwent surgery at SírioLibanês Hospital in São Paulo by neurosurgeon Francisco Sampaio’s team.
Reporter Ernesto Paglia accompanied the singer to an appointment. Wesley arrived completely naughty and was scheduled to return to the stage later that week.
Ernesto Paglia: Fifteen minutes of advice, not much more. It was about removing the threads and seeing the answer to Wesley Safadão’s question: Can I go on stage, doctor?
Francisco Sampaio, doctor: It would be irresponsible on my part to say the least to dismiss him for returning to the stage at this moment. But next week, at 15 days and already well advanced in healing, he has a 99.999% chance of coming back.
Wesley Safadao: I’m sad because I really wanted to go back, but like I said, I trust God a lot, everything has a purpose, right? It’s like he just said, I think the priority is to take care of his life.
See the full report in the video above.
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