Nicko McBrain has come a long way since he had a medical emergency earlier this year, and nearly after a year after the incident, the musician is now ready to continue his musical legacy, however, he also admitted that there was a point in his life that he thought he would never returrn.
Accrding to NME, the musician suffered a minor stroke back in January 2023. Unfortunately, the incident left the right side of his upper body paralyzed.
In order for him to get back to his normal life, he underwent over 10 weeks of "intensive therapy" as he really wanted gain his strength again.
Fortunately, McBrain was able to recover and he joined Iron Maiden with their rehearsals for their "The Future Past Tour."
Nicko McBrain Says Health Issue Was Difficult
Almost a year after the medical emergency, the musician spoke with Metal Hammer Magazine to share an insight about what happened to him in January.
He admitted that he initially feared that he won't be able to perform in front of his fans again because he was paralyzed.
"When it first happened, I thought, this is it, I'm not going to be able to play. I've got a tour coming up in three months' time," he said.
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Throughout his time at the hospital, McBrain reflected a lot and thanks to his wife, she encouraged him to get through his health problem.
In addition to the support that he got from his life partner, the drummer also got in touch with his Iron Maiden bandmates.
"Throughout all this period of time, I was in touch with [Iron Maiden bassist] Steve [Harris]. Obviously, all the guys, and I'd have a bit of a chat with them on the phone and they were all very, very encouraging, and none more so than Steve," he added.
Nicko McBrain Announced His Health Issue Months After
McBrain didn't immediately tell his fans that he suffered a stroke earlier this year, in fact, he waited until August to announce it.
The reason why he initially hid it from the public was because he wanted to focus more on the performance aspect of their tour and he was also getting back to "100% fitness."
This was not McBrain's major health setback over the past years because in 2022, he revealed that he had laryngeal cancer which was diagnosed back in 2020.
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