'I thought I was going to die': Egyptian actor Karim Kassem shares experience with the coronavirus

The actor spoke out about the severity of Covid-19, preparing his will and his symptoms

Egyptian actor Karim Kassem posted a 13-minute video on Instagram, sharing his experience with Covid-19. Instagram / Karim Kassem

Egyptian actor Karim Kassem has revealed he feared for his life after contracting the coronavirus.

The Sons of Rizk actor took to social media to describe his symptoms, saying he had severe headaches, was unable to smell or taste anything, and had a temperature of 39.5°C that would not subside, no matter how much medication he took.

“I thought they’d break down the door to find that I had died alone in my apartment,” Kassem said in an Instagram video he posted on Sunday, June 7. “I was prepared to do a video stating my will.”

However, his symptoms began to subside after six days, and Kassem – who stayed isolated at home throughout his three-week fight with Covid-19 – got on the road to recovery.

In the 13-minute video, Kassem, 33, said he decided to speak out about his experience, hoping that it would help those who had contracted the virus and anyone who still might.

He initially wanted to make a video once the first symptoms began showing in May, "but then I decided to talk about the experience once I recovered", he said.

The symptoms began with a fever and a relentless headache that made Kassem think he was “suffering from internal bleeding".

“The fourth and fifth day were the hardest,” he said in the video, which had already been been viewed more than 750,000 times at the time of writing.

Kassem – who had his cinematic breakthrough in the 2006 teen film Awqat Faragh – said he didn't know how he managed to contract the virus. He had just wrapped up filming for an undisclosed project when he began to suffer from symptoms.

"It was around the end of April, beginning of May. I wasn't even sure I had contracted the virus," he said, adding that he felt like he was getting the flu, so he stayed indoors for 10 to 12 days – seeing very few people – until the first symptoms began emerging.

"Within 12 hours of the first symptoms, it became clear that I had the virus. So I let everyone that I had seen in those two weeks know," Kassem said, adding that he stayed home and nursed the symptoms with paracetamol and vitamin C.

The actor had already left his family home, where his 79-year-old father resides, as early as March, as news of the pandemic spread.

“I had to leave the house frequently for work. Like many of you, I had responsibilities so I couldn’t stop working. But I had to make sure that I kept my father safe,” he said. “My father is the most important person in my life.”

Kassem urged those who were showing symptoms of Covid-19 to stay isolated and away from friends and loved one.

“Don’t go out, because if you do, you’ll be putting others in harm’s way,” he said. “Many say that it’s just like flu and they treat it lightly. But it’s not. Its effects are severe and you need to take care of yourself and isolate yourself to make sure you protect your loved ones.”

Kassem, who made sure he no longer had the virus by getting tested after Eid, also noted that it was normal to feel like a social outcast if you contract the virus.

“The world is right living in fear of the virus,” he said, “and it’s normal to feel people are frightened of you if you have the virus. But don’t worry, everything will go back to normal.”