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Gary Numan’s Wife Gemma Left Partially Paralyzed After Spinal Surgery Amid Family Tragedy
Gemma Numan, the wife of music icon Gary Numan, has disclosed that she has been left paralyzed in her left arm due to a rare complication after surgery on her spine to fix a herniated disc. The 57-year-old posted the information on Instagram with a picture of herself and Gary, 67, out for a walk at Kew Gardens, London.
“Still recovering [from] the sadder outcome of left arm paralysis after my multi-level discectomy,” she captioned, indicating it was the surgery done towards the end of last year. A multi-level discectomy is a surgical procedure where the damaged or herniated discs at several levels of the spine are removed to alleviate nerve compression.
Paralysis is an extremely rare complication, however, it is a known risk due to the very nature of the surgery which is close to the spinal cord and nerve roots.
Just months after Gary’s younger brother John passed away in November, the family has had to endure the recent difficult times.
Gemma Numan Reveals Paralysis Following Surgery and Emotional Turmoil
Gemma Numan took to Instagram to share her journey, she disclosed that her left arm became paralyzed straight after her cervical spine operation on 11th December. “My left arm got stuck straight away! This is one of the unfortunate scenarios that can occur,” she explained.
After a course of physiotherapy, she is now able to move her lower arm and biceps, however, she still experiences “complete loss” in her shoulder and nearby areas. To add to the difficulty of the situation, Gemma is left-handed. She told a story of how she bought a tiny travel paint kit to cheer herself up but then she started to cry because she realized that she couldn’t use it properly. “Get back, cried and realized I can’t use it cos I’m left handed,” she added. “So I kept on trying by constantly turning the paper round! It’s b******s but that’s with my lead hand which is now not really working with any control.”
Gemma, who has three children with Gary Numan, hasn’t been able to go back to their family residence in Los Angeles since September. The couple came back to the UK on December 4, a week before her operation.
The couple who have been married since 1997, have hit a rough patch which includes Gemma’s deteriorating health and the passing of Gary’s little brother John Webb, a piece of news Gary was informed of while he was on stage during his tour last November.
Gemma Numan Talks About Health Issues, Family Leave, and Gary’s Support
Gemma Numan kept it real and gave an update on her health, disclosing that she had three operations since August and still faces another one. The separation from her family and pets has been the most painful aspect of it. “I miss my animals so much that it makes [me] feel sick. Gary has looked after me here in the UK the whole time. And I Facetime babies. But animals are just missed,” she said.
Gemma and Gary’s three daughters—Raven, Persia, and Echo—are presently at their place in Los Angeles. Gemma is so thankful for Gary, who has put his life on hold just to take care of her in the UK. “He has been bored s***less with so much looking after me and it’s all my fault he’s fallen behind on all things Numan again to look after me,” she mentioned.
With this latest spinal operation, she put an end to her health problems that had continued to deteriorate over the years. Last August, she opened up about having five cervical discs taken out and replaced. For this, she decided to wait until the end of Gary’s tour in December before going through the procedure. A former temporary operation had given her around eight months of relief before the neck pain and migraines came back.
Gemma Numan opens up about rare vascular disorders and health challenges
Gemma Numan explained that she was diagnosed with nutcracker syndrome, which is a rare vascular disorder where the left renal vein gets compressed; this resulted in her undergoing a complicated kidney autotransplantation to relocate her kidney inside her body.
Moreover, she revealed that she had been diagnosed with May-Thurner syndrome, which impacts the veins in the pelvis, and with pelvic congestion syndrome. Gemma hinted that May-Thurner syndrome might have been the source of a blood clot that caused the mini-stroke she had in 2024. She reflected on her health problems by saying, “I’m a broken nightmare! Hopefully getting fixed!”
In the middle of 2024, Gary Numan revealed that Gemma had received treatment for a heart arrhythmia, which made her pulse go up to dangerously high levels, and he called it a “scary time” for their family.
