Damar Hamlin has spoken out after his hospitalization.
The Buffalo Bills safety took to Instagram to share his first public statement since suffering cardiac arrest on the field during an NFL game earlier this week.
"When you put real love out into the world it comes back to you 3x's as much..," Hamlin wrote Jan. 7. "The Love has been overwhelming, but I'm thankful for every single person that prayed for me and reached out."
While on the mend, Hamlin noted that he has confidence in the future of his health.
"We brung the world back together behind this," he continued. "If you know me you know this only gone make me stronger. On a long road keep praying for me!"
Hamlin also took to his IG Story Jan. 7 to share a snap of himself on a video call, showing him grinning ear to ear. He paired the screenshot with the words, "Back Working Back Smiling!!!"
On Jan. 6, Hamlin reconnected with his teammates on FaceTime, per a tweet made by the Buffalo Bills Jan. 6. The tweet noted that he told them, "Love you boys."
The glimpses into his recovery come after Hamlin collapsed suddenly during his team's game against the Cincinnati Bengals Jan. 2. Hamlin's health emergency occurred after tackling Bengals receiver Tee Higgins. At the time, the 24-year-old received CPR for over 10 minutes before being transported to a local hospital.
Following his hospitalization at UC Health, Damar's uncle Dorrian Glenn told CNN Jan. 3 that his nephew was placed on a ventilator. Since then, news of Hamlin's health has taken an upward turn.
"We would like to share that there has been substantial improvement in his condition over the past 24 hours," Dr. Timothy Pritts, Division Chief of General Surgery at UC Health, said during a Jan. 5 press conference. "We had significant concern about him after the injury and after the event that happened on the field, but he is making substantial progress."
Pritts noted at the time that there are signs Hamlin's neurological condition and function are intact, including being able to "emerge and follow commands" while in the hospital on Jan. 4. In fact, Pritts shared that Hamlin took the chance to ask in writing who won the NFL game while staying at UC Health.
"When he asked, 'Did we win?' the answer is 'Yes, Damar," Pritts noted during the Jan. 5 press conference, "'You won. You've won the game of life.""
Looking towards the future, Pritts shared that Hamlin is under the care of the ICU neurocritical care teams, trauma surgery, a cardiology team, expert nurses and a respiratory therapist.
"They are attending to him, and he still has significant progress that he needs to make," he said. "But this marks a really good turning point in his ongoing care."