“Abbott Elementary” star Tyler James Williams picked up a Golden Globe this week, five years after his body “crashed” following a massive flare-up of Crohn’s disease — a condition he says he didn’t know he had.
Williams, 30, said recently Men’s Health pushed his body “to the limit” in a bid to build muscle as he vowed to shed his ugly image from the title role in ‘Everybody Hates Chris’, which ran from 2005 to 2009.
“I was trying to read for roles my age and I couldn’t leave high school,” she claimed.
But in late 2017 she would experience excruciating stomach pains and an inability to keep anything down — even a prep for a doctor-ordered colonoscopy. A gastroenterologist diagnosed Williams with a major flare-up of Crohn’s disease, he told Men’s Health.
At least 500,000 Americans suffer from Crohn’s, a condition that irritates and inflames the digestive tract. The disease can lead to weight loss and malnutrition and can be life-threatening if left untreated.
Williams said his body “just crashed” and he underwent an emergency procedure to remove six inches of his lower intestine. He recalled being rushed back to surgery when his intestines were punctured because they were too damaged to heal back together.
Living off IV feeds with an ostomy bag for several months, Williams reportedly weighed just 105 pounds and didn’t have the strength to stand.
“The last thought I had was, ‘Holy, this could be it,'” he said, adding that his body was “shaking” after going into septic shock.
“If this is it, I’m not happy. I worked a lot. I did many things. I didn’t like any of it. It can’t be this,’” she recalled thinking.
Still, Williams pulled through, but said his younger brother, Tyrel, experienced his own flare-up of Crohn’s in 2020. Now, the couple, along with younger brother Tylen, who has no symptoms, are focusing to their health together.
“I had to learn how to stop making a dramatic change happen too quickly and learn how to have a better relationship with my body,” Williams told Men’s Health about his fitness journey.
“The important thing to remember for me and those like me is that longevity is a big part of the game. If you can not [stay strong] and be healthy, it really doesn’t make sense,” he added.
Williams said he avoids Crohn’s triggers like booze, coffee and red meat in favor of lean protein, steamed vegetables, shakes and green juice. He said he has also been prescribed special medication.
“The doctor said, ‘Here’s something that will keep your system from getting inflamed. It will put your mind right and make you eat.’ And I thought, “What is this wonderful drug we’re talking about?” And he wrote me a prescription for weed,” Williams laughed in a chat with the magazine.
On Tuesday, Williams won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor in a Television Musical, Comedy or Drama for his portrayal of reluctant teacher Gregory Eddy in the ABC comedy “Abbott Elementary,” which streams on Hulu.
“White Lotus” star Jennifer Coolidge presented Williams with the award — though she called it an Oscar.
