Nickelodeon alum Kel Mitchell is on the road to recovery following a recent health scare.
“Grateful for the flood of prayers and positive vibes that surrounded me during a genuinely frightening time,” Mitchell, 45, wrote via Instagram on Wednesday, November 8. “The scare was real, but so was the support.”
He continued: “With the grace of God and the skill of the medical team, I’m now on the road to recovery at home, embraced by the love of my family. Your kindness has been a lifeline, and I can’t thank you enough. Much love to each of you.”
The All That alum did not disclose the nature of his illness, though TMZ reported earlier on Wednesday that Mitchell had been admitted to a hospital in Los Angeles.
Mitchell opened up about his health scare in a Friday, November 10, Instagram post, noting he initially felt dehydrated and tried to remedy that by drinking more water.
“When I did that, the whole right side of my arm and my leg was numb, followed by me not being able to swallow,” he recalled. “And that’s when I panicked. So, I drove myself to the hospital … I was panicking, so I wobbled myself to the car.”
After Mitchell arrived at the ER, he “failed” multiple initial tests about his condition and his doctors noticed his motor skills “were not working.”
“What we feared wasn’t what it was. It was actually a bulging disc that I had from a prior injury that was pressing up against a nerve, mimicking all those symptoms that I was going through,” he added. “I’m thanking God that I am good!”
Mitchell’s wife, Asia Lee, reposted the initial social media statement on her Instagram Story. She’s been married to the comedian since January 2012 and they share daughter Wisdom and son Honor, Mitchell is also a father to daughters Allure and Lyric, whom he shares with ex-wife Tyisha Hampton.
Mitchell’s celebrity friends wished for a speedy recovery in the comments. Kenan Thompson, for his part, sent a trio of praying hands emojis.
Mitchell and Thompson have been friends and coworkers since 1994, meeting on the set of Nickelodeon’s All That. Their comedy skills landed them their own spinoff, titled Kenan & Kel, three years later based on a sketch of the same name.
“We didn’t [know each other before All That] and it’s funny how we all met,” Mitchell recalled during a March interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “I don’t know if they planned this, but they had all the kids come one by one off the elevator in the lobby. I remember I was down there already, and the elevator opened, and this kid came out with Mighty Ducks gear on and he had the roller blades and everything. … I’m like, ‘I gotta hang out with that kid!’”
He added at the time: “I feel like with me and Kenan, it was just, like, I would say a joke and then he would finish it and it just felt like we gelled really good.”
The duo’s Kenan & Kel series ran for four seasons, featuring the now-classic “Good Burger” skit that inspired the 1997 film of the same name.
After years of fans clamoring for a Good Burger sequel, Thompson, 45, and Mitchell finally announced in March that it was in the works. Production started several months later in May.
Good Burger 2, which hits Paramount+ on November 22, will reunite Thompson and Mitchell’s characters of Ed and Dexter. Per the official trailer, the two fast food employees get up to their old hijinks in between shifts at the restaurant.
