Mary Lou Retton Opens Up About Pneumonia Battle, Looking “Death In The Eyes” In First Interview Since ICU Stay

“I am blessed to be here because there was a time when they were about to put me on life support.”

Mary Lou Retton opened up about her battle with a rare form of pneumonia for the first time since facing “death in the eyes.”

Roughly two months after she was released from a Texas hospital, the legendary Olympic gymnast sat down with Hoda Kotb for an emotional conversation about her monthlong ICU stay and her ongoing recovery.

“This is serious, and this is life. I am so grateful to be here,” Retton, 55, said in an interview that aired on Today Monday morning. “I am blessed to be here because there was a time when they were about to put me on life support.”

"I’m not great yet, I know it’s going to be a really long road—I don’t know how long, I may indefinitely need oxygen—but you have no idea how blessed and how grateful I was for this holiday season,” she continued.

The former Olympian, who remains on a portable oxygen concentrator, recalled the beginning of her illness, and how quickly her condition quickly devolved.

"I didn’t know what was wrong with me," Retton said, noting that she found herself tired and unable to take in a "big, deep breath” while getting a manicure with her daughter, Shayla Schrepfer.

The next day she was on the floor of her bedroom struggling to breathe. Luckily, a neighbor who lives across the street, noticed that one of the cars in her driveway had the door open.

"She came in the house. She knows my code, and saw me and found me," Retton said. "And Magda pretty much saved my life."

From that point, the mother of four daughters deteriorated quickly.

The night Retton was admitted to the ICU, a doctor told Schrepfer and her sisters that they were considering "taking the next step" and putting Retton on a ventilator.

Schrepfer told Kotb that a doctor warned her that they were unsure if her mom would make it through the night.

Her daughters put their hands on her and prayed.

"They were saying their goodbyes to me," Retton recalled.

Then, after trying one more breathing apparatus, Retton was able to reach an oxygen level that prevented her from going on a ventilator.

Doctors still aren't sure what caused the pneumonia or what her recovery will look like, but Retton is optimistic.

“When you face death in the eyes, I have so much to look forward to. I’m a fighter and I’m not going to give it up,” she told Kotb.

For more Southern Living news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on Southern Living.