Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson Had ‘Very Different Reactions’ to the Coronavirus
Tom Hanks has offered an inside look at the types of COVID-19 symptoms he and his wife, Rita Wilson, experienced around the time they each tested positive for the novel coronavirus in March.
Mirroring the various manifestations observed in those who've contracted the infectious disease across the globe, the actor said that he and his spouse experienced "very different reactions" from each other.
That's how Hanks explained it to the Guardian this week. The Forrest Gump and Cast Away leading man tested positive with his wife on March 10. A three-day hospitalization for the pair followed. But asked if they're fighting any lingering symptoms now, the actor responds in the negative.
"Oh no, we're fine," Hanks answers. "Our discomfort because of the virus was pretty much done in two weeks and we had very different reactions, and that was odd. My wife lost her sense of taste and smell, she had severe nausea, she had a much higher fever than I did."
"I just had crippling body aches, I was very fatigued all the time and I couldn't concentrate on anything for more than about 12 minutes," he continues.
Hanks jokes, "That last bit is kinda like my natural state anyway."
Still, the actor recalls his worry that initially surrounded the diagnosis, especially considering his other health issues. Thankfully, however, severe symptoms such as fevers and lung infections missed the couple.
"When we were in the hospital, I said: 'I'm 63, I have type 2 diabetes, I had a stent in my heart — am I a red flag case?'" Hanks remembers. "But as long as our temperatures did not spike, and our lungs did not fill up with something that looked like pneumonia, they were not worried."
The actor and his wife appear to be past their coronavirus experience for now. That said, Hanks' inner calm seems to have guided him through the ordeal.
"I'm not one who wakes up in the morning wondering if I'm going to see the end of the day or not," he adds. "I'm pretty calm about that."
For those worried about protecting themselves against COVID-10, there are steps one can take. The CDC recommends frequently washing hands, avoid close contact with others and wearing face coverings when in public.
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