Matt Sallis was 19 when he contracted septicaemia and pneumonia and ended up on life support.
He was so close to dying his family rushed to his side to say goodbye.
In an exclusive interview, Matt said: “I came home from uni one weekend and had a massive headache but didn’t think anything of it.
“But when I woke up the next day I couldn’t move. The whole left side of my body was pretty much paralysed.
CHANNEL 4
CHANNEL 4
“They thought they were going to lose me on the first night”
Matt Sallis
“My sister called an ambulance and then within hours I was being put to sleep. From then on I was on life support. I didn’t have a great chance of living.”
Within hours Matt’s family were convinced he’d never wake up. He added: “My mum called the whole family and told them to come to the hospital.
“They thought they were going to lose me on the first night. My mum was in bits. “And my twin brother thought he was going to lose part of himself.”
Medics told Matt his illness was probably caused by him getting a tattoo a month earlier. He said: “I was later told that had I been a smoker I probably wouldn’t be here.”
CHANNEL 4
Even after Matt woke up he was still so fragile he was kept in hospital for two months. He lost four stone and it took another six months for him to fully recover.
Matt, from Romford, Essex, said: “I came out of the hospital at eight and a half stone. I didn’t look too well. When I looked in the mirror and saw myself my outlook on life completely changed.
"That’s when I became more motivated to achieve something.”
Matt, now 26, has gone on to become a competitive body builder.
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SAS: Who Dares Wins has been dubbed telly’s toughest show and Matt credits his brush with death for helping him face it.
He said: “When we were filming I was thinking, ‘I’ve been through worse than this… I’ve been on my death bed…’
“There were times that were painful and uncomfortable but I had the mental strength to push on. But I stayed because I didn’t want to get home and know I hadn’t given it my all.
"The worst thing for me would be failing myself.”
SAS: Who Dares Wins continues tonight on Channel 4 at 9pm.