The 'Hamilton' actor opens up that he is more conscious of the coronavirus pandemic because of his previous health struggles after contracting H1N1 in 2010.
- May 22, 2021
AceShowbiz - Leslie Odom Jr. believes his battle with swine flu in 2010 made him more conscious of the threat of Covid-19.
The 39-year-old actor contracted H1N1 in 2010 amid the swine flu pandemic, and has said going through the experience made him realise how "debilitating" viruses can be, which made him take the current health crisis more seriously.
"I think, when your body houses a foreign host, I think something happens psychologically," he explained on the "HypochondriActor" podcast. "You really realise how vulnerable you are, and how I could go from a … veritably healthy guy in my mid-20s and that I could get this illness that, in some ways, was debilitating, just really affected my trust in the world. Thank god … it was super minor."
And the "One Night in Miami…" star also described his experience of swine flu as "unnatural."
"(It was) like the regular flu, which I've had many times, (but also different)," he added. "There was a weird component. Whatever was going on inside me did not feel natural. It felt synthetic."
"The dizziness was like nothing I'd ever experienced. There was this time, I was finally doing my laundry, this was when the laundry was downstairs, and I made a left turn and then I made another left turn, just in my building, and I went down. Making a left turn I got so dizzy that I just fell."
Leslie has even more reason to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously now too as his wife Nicolette Robinson gave birth to the couple's second child in March (21).
The couple welcomed a son named Able Phineas on 25 March - a younger sibling for their four-year-old daughter Lucille Ruby.
Alongside a selection of pictures of baby Able, Leslie wrote on Instagram, "More life! One whole week with our Abe. Watching Nicolette give birth to these kids...? Simply, the bravest acts I've ever witnessed from a foot away. I love you, sweetheart and I am in awe. Our little family bursts at the seams with joy! And gratitude."
"Able Phineas 3/25/21 More life. (sic)"
