CLEVELAND — With a smile and a burst of energy, Browns legend Bernie Kosar sent a message to News 5 viewers Thursday.
"Day 3 over here at University Hospital and really starting to get into besides trying to eat a little bit and that really trying to get into a lot of exercise today," he said.
That includes getting out of bed and walking the halls.
"Actually moving around without the walker and stuff and probably already got a couple thousand steps in this morning," he said. "Truthfully, today I'm super excited about the progress from a health and wellness perspective of it."
He is beginning to eat again and build up his strength. He said he's been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support, and those who have contributed to his GoFundMe or to the Wellness Fund at ShopKosar.com, but what makes it difficult is not the physical pain inside but rather the emotional pain he feels for his donor's family. Legally, Kosar cannot be told yet about the identity of his donor, but he has strong reason to believe he knows who it is, and he said his heart breaks for the family as they get ready to lay their loved one to rest. A service he told me he asked his doctors if he could attend.
"Just purely from a human standpoint, from a parent standpoint, from an emotional standpoint, God is my spirit with them," he said. "I tried my b.s.'ing ability today with the great doctors at University Hospitals and that did not go over too well so I had about as much success changing this play as I had changing some of Bill Belichick's plays so I'm going to have to stay in place here today but in spirit I really want to make sure that everybody's out there today thinking and praying."
These first days after transplant surgery are crucial as the body adjusts and the patient recovers, and Kosar said he is following his doctors' orders.
"I've been given this second chance of life and we joked yesterday with some of the close calls that I had. I'm not El Cato with nine lives but I'm probably trending on used up about three or four of them," Kosar said.
