Alyssa Milano has said she “felt like she was dying” as she battled Covid-19 earlier this year.
The former Charmed star shared her experience of the disease on Wednesday night, telling her followers that having coronavirus symptoms made her the most ill she had ever felt.
Sharing a photo of herself in an oxygen mask – taken in April, after she’d been “sick for two weeks” – Alyssa explained: “I had never been this kind of sick. Everything hurt. Loss of smell. It felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest.
“I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t keep food in me. I lost nine pounds in two weeks. I was confused. Low grade fever. And the headaches were horrible. I basically had every Covid symptom.”
Alyssa went on to state that she felt compelled to speak out after taking two Covid-19 tests in March and an antibody test, all of which initially came back negative.
“After living the last 4 months with lingering symptoms like, vertigo, stomach abnormalities, irregular periods, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, zero short term memory, and general malaise, I went and got an antibody test from a blood draw (not the finger prick) from a lab,” she wrote.
“I am POSITIVE for covid antibodies. I had Covid19. I just want you to be aware that our testing system is flawed and we don’t know the real numbers.”
She added: “I also want you to know, this illness is not a hoax. I thought I was dying. It felt like I was dying.
“I will be donating my plasma with hopes that I might save a life. Please take care of yourselves. Please wash your hands and wear a mask and social distance. I don’t want anyone to feel the way I felt.”
Alyssa is not the only star to have candidly detailed the effects that having Covid-19 had on her health.
US singer-songwriter Pink and her son Jameson both had the disease, which she described as a “rollercoaster”, while British actor Idris Elba has said that being diagnosed with Covid-19 also affected his mental health.
Former glamour model Linda Lusardi also spent time in intensive care after contracting coronavirus, and has spoken candidly about the illness since leaving hospital.