What To Know
- Maggie Sajak recalled taking her father, Pat, to the emergency room after he developed severe abdominal pain following a morning walk.
- Pat underwent successful emergency surgery for a life-threatening intestinal blockage, with no more serious underlying condition found.
- Maggie said the ordeal reinforced the importance of family and led to her role on Wheel of Fortune after she filled in during his recovery.
Wheel of Fortune icon Pat Sajak underwent emergency surgery years before he retired as host — and his daughter, Maggie Sajak, detailed the “scariest day of my life” in a new video.
On Saturday, November 7, Maggie, 31, took to Instagram with a video of herself recounting her dad’s medical scare.
“Seven years ago today was the scariest day of my life,” she began the clip. “But it also turned out to be one of the most important.”
She continued, “It was a normal day. I was in Los Angeles with my parents, and my dad was on set to tape Wheel that day. My dad and I love to go on walks together. We went on our normal morning walk; everything was business as usual. By the time we got home, my dad was experiencing a lot of abdominal pain, and he’s not a big complainer.”
Maggie explained that she and her mom “knew something was going on,” so they brought Pat in to the emergency room.
“And thank goodness that we did because it turns out we were actually in a life-and-death situation,” she pointed out. “He was experiencing an intestinal blockage, and he needed emergency surgery. It was terrifying. But thankfully, it wasn’t a sign of something more serious underlying. Surgery went well.”
Still, Maggie found several “silver linings” in Pat’s health scare, sharing, “That experience put literally everything in my life in perspective.”
She explained, “At that moment, all that mattered was my family, my loved ones, and our health. I remember so vividly sitting in my dad’s hospital room and watching the news about what was happening to my dad. It was this out-of-body experience, and it really just made me realize that what matters is what’s going on in that hospital room, what’s going on with my dad and my family at that time.”
Additionally, Maggie said she realized “how important it is to spend time with your family, with your loved ones, and to never apologize for it.”
Another silver lining? Maggie getting to fill in on WoF and eventually work with her father.
“About a week after my dad had surgery, he was healing well. But he wasn’t medically cleared to go back to work yet,” she recalled. “That is when I filled in at the puzzle board when Vanna [White] filled in for my dad. Filling in at that time is what eventually led to my role as social correspondent on the show and getting the chance to work with my dad for those years.”
To conclude her video marking seven years since Pat’s emergency surgery, Maggie said the “really scary experience led to some really beautiful experiences.”
She added, “Now of course, if I could rewind, I wish none of that ever happened, and my dad didn’t have to go through that pain, and we didn’t have to go through that fear. But I hope this can be your reminder today to appreciate the little things. It can be easy to forget, and it can be hard to put things into perspective. But I hope this can push you in the right direction today.”
In 2024, Pat’s final Wheel of Fortune episode as host aired, marking the end of a 43-year run. Ryan Seacrest has since taken over alongside White.
Wheel of Fortune, weekdays, check local listings, streaming next day on Hulu and Peacock