NAGDESISYON ang bagong Kapuso leading man na si Richard Yap na ibahagi sa publiko ang naging karanasan niya nang tamaan ng COVID-19 isang taon na ngayon ang nakararaan.
Isa ang aktor sa mga unang celebrity na tinamaan ng killer virus last year at pinatunayan niya na isa ito sa pinakanakakatakot at nakakapraning na bahagi ng kanyang buhay.Sa pamamagitan ng bago niyang vlog sa YouTube, idinetalye ni Richard kung paano niya nilabanan ang COVID-19 noong mga panahong halos lahat ay takot na takot mahawa at magkasakit.
“I’m sharing this so that we can all learn something from my experience. This was a very difficult time in our lives but no one knew about it because we chose not to make it public at that time.
“Sometimes you will never know what someone is going through so let’s always choose to be kind. Much love to everyone who helped me through this, specially my family, the doctors, nurses, medical staff at Makati Medical Center and to everyone who sent their well wishes and prayers,” simulang pahayag ng aktor.
Ayon sa 53-year-old Kapuso star, nagkasakit siya bago pa ang unang lockdown sa Metro Manila, “This was at a time when COVID was just fairly new, just after the lockdown. I was traveling back and forth between Manila and Cebu so I don’t know where I got it.
“March 14 I was still in Cebu and they said that the lockdown was going to happen on March 15 so all the flights were going to be cancelled and you couldn’t come back to Manila if you were stuck there.
“So I had to hurriedly get my ticket rebooked. I was okay at that time. Nothing was wrong with me. But when I came back after a day I was feeling bad already,” kuwento ng negosyante.
Pagpapatuloy pa ni Richard, “I was coughing, I felt feverish. Ibang klaseng fever. It’s the kind your body is so hot na when you wake up pawis na pawis ka and hindi yung ordinary na konting pawis. Basa talaga pati yung kama mo basang basa.
“At that time, wala pang mga gamot. I was taking antibiotics already because my cough was starting to get so bad already. Na when you cough it’s like all your guts are going to come out with your guts. Ganu’n kagrabe.
“It was all so sudden. Pag umubo ka na, sumasakit na yung dibdib mo and then parang luluwa na lahat ng lamang loob mo when you cough. I was taking medicine so I was hoping na medyo mawala. I started having difficulty breathing,” pagbabalik-tanaw pa ng dating Kapamilya actor.
Tatlong araw daw siyang nasa ER (emergency room) dahil walang bakanteng kwarto sa ospital, “Buti na lang when I went in, hindi pa ganu’n kapuno, meron pa akong nakuhang kama.
“Du’n lang ako sa tabi, ako lang mag-isa. I didn’t want to attract attention also. I told my doctor I didn’t want any fanfare. I don’t want any special treatment.
“And ang hirap because kahit na gutom ka or whatever, wala ka namang mautusan na bumili ng pagkain mo. Ang hirap pa sa ER kasi isa lang yung restroom. My oxygen level was low at that time. Mababang mababa siya.
“So they took an x-ray of me pero yung sa akin ang dami ng puti-puti (sa lungs) means that I already had pneumonia and then yung puti-puti yun yung COVID-19 already. Yung mga virus was infecting my lungs already,” pagbabahagi pa ni Richard.
Nang magkaroon na ng sariling kwarto, may nangyari raw sa kanya kaya nag-request siya na ilipat sa ibang room, “Binangungot ako ng five times that night. Every time I’d go to sleep, I’d wake up because of the nightmare and iba yung nightmare na parang papatayin ka.
“Sabi ko, ‘Hindi yata ako mamamatay sa COVID, mamamatay ako dito sa bangungot.’ I didn’t want to sleep. Pero sa sobrang pagod na, makakatulog ka ulit. Pag tulog mo ulit, babangungutin ka na naman. It was different nightmares every time I fell asleep. All I did was sleep.
“Everyday kukunan nila ako ng dugo. I didn’t know it at that time but my doctor was so worried that I wasn’t going to make it. Kasi pagrabe nang pagrabe yung COVID ko. Pero buti na lang, because I was healthy at that time, hindi ako umabot na kailangan ma-intubate. Kasi pag na-intubate ka, ang hirap ng buhay mo. Para kang naka-coma na. Buti na lang nilalabanan ko rin siya,” lahad pa niya.
“I was really worried also kasi ang laki na ng bill ko during that time (umabot na sa P200,000 sa ikatlong araw pa lang). Good thing nag-work yung mga medicine na binigay din sa akin. Nawala na yung spots sa chest ko. Medyo nag-clear up na siya.
“So by the end of the 10th day medyo clear na siya. Pero sa swab test, I wasn’t clear of COVID yet. So at least I could breathe on my own. My pulse oxymeter was already 97, 98 already so medyo normal na ako and I wasn’t coughing anymore, I wasn’t sick anymore in terms of yung pareho du’n sa first time na pumasok ako,” kuwento ng Kapuso star.
Kuwento pa niya, matapos ang 10 araw sa ospital, umabot sa kalahating milyon ang bill niya, “Buti na lang may credit card ako. Philhealth only paid P10,000 out of his P500,000 bill. Inisip ko na lang siguro mas kailangan ng pera sa iba. Hopefully sa iba napunta at hindi sa ibang bulsa.
“That was a little disappointing pero wala naman tayong magagawa. We just let it be. I tried to ask Philhealth about it pero hanggang ngayon wala naman silang sagot,” pahayag ni Richard na malapit nang sumabak sa lock-in taping para sa serye nila ni Heart Evangelista na kukunan pa sa Sorsogon.