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Former 'Bachelorette' contestant reveals he has Guillain-Barré syndrome

Former "Bachelorette" contestant J.P. Rosenbaum, 42, shared that he has Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare disorder in which the immune system attacks the nerves.
/ Source: TODAY

Former "Bachelorette" contestant J.P. Rosenbaum has revealed he has been diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare autoimmune disorder in which the immune system attacks the nerves.

Rosenbaum, 42, who married his wife, Ashley Hebert, 34, after they met on season 7 of the reality show, posted a picture of himself in a hospital bed on his Instagram Story Sunday, writing, "Guillain-Barré anyone? Yeah, I had to Google that one, too."

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"Bachelorette" alum J.P. Rosenbaum has shared that he has been diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. Matt Petit / Getty Images

He also posted a series of videos from his hospital bed in which he reacted to the diagnosis. Symptoms of the disorder include muscle weakness that can spread throughout the body and even result in paralysis in severe cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Very surreal, and humbling and crazy, rare," he said. "Things you do every day, like picking up this phone, or buttoning buttons, tying shoelaces, putting on deodorant, just can't do it. Picking up my kids, can't do it. Wiping your ass, maybe TMI, but might have Ashley assist on the next one.

"Just can't really believe it."

He added that the next steps are to figure out whether the symptoms of his condition have "plateaued," which he said he believes has happened. He also said he may be spending another couple days in the hospital after undergoing two rounds of immunoglobulin to help his immune system respond to the disorder.

"I know there's lot of physical therapy in my future," he said. "Hopefully I'm on the road to recovery. I've heard from a lot of people and know things can get a lot, lot worse so hopefully that is not the case for me."

Rosenbaum also thanked everyone who reached out in support after hearing the news, including people with Guillain-Barré who have offered advice.

Hebert, who has two children with Rosenbaum, also posted about her husband's condition on her Instagram Story, thanking everyone for their outpouring of support and writing that he "is in treatment and doing well."

The diagnosis comes just a week after the couple celebrated their seventh wedding anniversary, which Rosenbaum marked with a sweet Instagram post.

"7 years down, probably about 3-4 more to go,'' he wrote. "Happy anniversary to the woman responsible for all the love and happiness in this picture (and basically all my pictures for the last 7 years). ❤️ u @ashleylynnrosenbaum"