‘Roseanne’ Actor Breaks Back, Now Uses a Walker
Tom Arnold is recovering from a serious back injury after a late-night fall in a hotel room left him unable to get up and ultimately required emergency surgery.
The Roseanne actor and comedian discussed the accident Tuesday, Aug. 10, during an appearance on Lisa Guerrero’s UNLEASHED podcast. Guerrero later addressed concerns about Arnold’s health in an Instagram post about the episode.
During the interview, Guerrero asked Arnold about his recent use of a walker.
“You came up on a walker. What happened to your back? What did you do?” she asked.
Arnold described the injury as something that happened while he was traveling between cities and staying in different hotels.
“Well, it’s a great old man injury. When you’re 75 cities, 75 different hotel rooms, and the bathrooms are 75 different places,” he said.
Arnold explained that he got out of bed to use the bathroom at a hotel but did not turn on the light. He said he ran into a wall and fell backward onto the floor.
“I didn’t turn the light on and fell backwards on the floor and I couldn’t get up,” he said.
Arnold said he spent about four hours trying to get himself off the floor because of the severity of the pain. When his friends and family eventually found him, he said he wanted them to help him get to the airport so he could return home.
“It was so freaking painful that when my buddies and my family found me, I’m like, ‘Just get me up, take me to the airport, get me back home, and I’ll deal with this,’” he said.
Instead, his family took him to a hospital, where doctors performed emergency surgery. Arnold said he remained hospitalized for about two weeks before beginning rehabilitation. He spent several weeks using a wheelchair before progressing to a walker.
Arnold said he fractured a vertebra near his tailbone and described the damage as severe.
“I smashed it, it was shards and almost pierced my spinal cord,” he said.
He also revealed that he is preparing to undergo a heart procedure, although he did not provide a date or additional details.
Guerrero said in a follow-up Instagram post that Arnold’s health prompted concern from viewers after the episode was released.
