Hospital can be a scary place to find yourself in, but as legendary gospel singer Winnie Khumalo learnt it can also teach you some real truths.
Winnie was admitted into hospital with ulcers at the end of 2013, an ordeal she says left her fearing for her life.
"I nearly died," she tells us when we meet her on the set of e.tv's I Love South Africa.
"The reports weren't exaggerating. There was a time where I thought I can't take it anymore. I made peace with my maker," she adds.
"What I experienced back then was something else. I never want to go back to that state again. I was in hospital for a month".
She says it was only the support of her friends, fans and family that got her through the ordeal- but not everyone was there for her.
"At that time the people who I expected to be there were not there. I realised then that, in life, the people you think will be there to take care of you often will not," she says.
*Picture: Twitter