My Malaria Nightmare: How I Ignored the Warning Signs and Ended Up in the ER

I’ve always prided myself on being tough. At 68, I’ve powered through colds, flus, and the occasional aches that come with a high-pressure job like anchoring America Reports on Fox News. So when I started feeling off about a week before my hospital stint, I brushed it aside. I had deadlines, live broadcasts, and a packed schedule. A little fatigue? A few body aches? Nothing a cup of coffee and sheer willpower couldn’t fix. Or so I thought.

The first sign something was wrong came on a Monday, about a week before my diagnosis on August 25. I woke up feeling like I’d run a marathon in my sleep. My legs ached, my back was stiff, and my head felt like it was in a vice. “Just jet lag catching up,” I told myself. I popped some ibuprofen, suited up, and headed to the studio. On air, I felt a slight chill, but the bright lights and adrenaline of live TV masked it. I powered through my segments with Sandra Smith, cracking jokes and delivering the news like always. But deep down, I knew something wasn’t right.

Friday was when the fatigue really hit. I dragged myself to the studio, but it felt like wading through molasses. Every step was heavy, every word a struggle. My co-workers noticed I was quieter than usual, but I deflected with a laugh, blaming it on “getting old.” That night, I started feeling nauseous, and my appetite vanished. I forced down some soup, thinking it would help, but it didn’t. I was too stubborn to call a doctor. After all, I had a show to do on Monday, and I wasn’t about to let my team down.

By Sunday, the symptoms were impossible to ignore. I was shivering uncontrollably, even under a pile of blankets. My body felt like it was at war with itself—one minute burning up, the next shaking like a leaf. My wife insisted I see a doctor, but I promised I’d go for a checkup after my Monday show. “It’s just a bad flu,” I kept saying, as if saying it enough would make it true. But during that broadcast, I could barely keep it together. The shivering was so bad I had to grip the desk to steady myself. Off-camera, I was a mess, but I plastered on a smile and made it through. Barely.

When I finally saw my rheumatologist on Monday, August 25, I was expecting a quick exam and maybe some antibiotics. Instead, she took one look at my blood work—low platelets, low white blood cells—and her face turned serious. “You need to go to the ER. Now,” she said. I laughed it off at first, thinking she was overreacting. But the urgency in her voice stopped me cold. That’s when the fear crept in.

At the hospital, the diagnosis hit like a freight train: malaria. Severe malaria, to be exact. I thought, “Of course, John, you never do anything halfway.” But the reality was terrifying. Malaria can be deadly if untreated, and I’d spent a week ignoring every warning sign my body threw at me. The doctors at Inova Health hooked me up to IV artesunate, the heavy artillery for this kind of infection. They told me I was their first malaria case, which made me feel like some kind of medical unicorn—just not the kind you want to be.

Lying in that hospital bed, hooked up to monitors, I couldn’t help but replay the past week. The aches I dismissed as “old age.” The fever I chalked up to a virus. The fatigue I blamed on my schedule. I’d been so caught up in work, so determined to keep going, that I ignored what my body was screaming. If I’d listened sooner, maybe I wouldn’t be here, sweating one minute and shaking the next, wondering if I’d make it back to the anchor desk.

Recovery’s been a rollercoaster. Some days, I feel like I’m turning a corner; others, I’m back to feeling like death warmed over. The artesunate is doing its job, but malaria doesn’t go down without a fight. I’m hoping to be out of here by early September, back at America Reports with Sandra and the team. Trace Gallagher’s been a rock star filling in, and I’m grateful for the support from my Fox News family and the incredible staff at Inova.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: don’t ignore your body. Those aches, those chills, that bone-deep fatigue—they’re not just “part of the job.” I got lucky. Malaria could’ve taken me out if I’d waited any longer. So, to anyone reading this, take it from me: when your body’s trying to tell you something, listen. It might just save your life.