Britain’s Queen Elizabeth has spoken out about her “very frightening experience” when battling COVID-19 earlier this year.
Her Majesty contracted the illness in February, and at the time, she was said to have suffered “mild cold-like symptoms.” However, on Monday, she spoke about the difficulties she encountered following the diagnosis.
The 95-year-old monarch was speaking to medical staff and patients during a virtual video call to Royal London Hospital. The Queen is the patron of the medical facility and made the virtual call to celebrate the opening of the Queen Elizabeth Unit within the hospital.
The Queen calls COVID-19 a ‘horrible pandemic’
The Queen told a fellow COVID-19 sufferer during the video call: “It does leave one very tired and exhausted, doesn’t it, this horrible pandemic? It’s not a nice result.”
The Monarch, who turns 96 later this month, also added: “It obviously was a very frightening experience.”
Her Majesty was speaking with patient Asef Hussain and his wife, Shamina. Hussain has struggled with COVID-19 and was admitted to the hospital in December 2020. He still requires the use of a portable oxygen machine. Their family was hit very hard by the illness, which claimed the lives of Hussain’s father and brother.
According to the official Royal family Instagram page, the Queen Elizabeth Unit was constructed in just five weeks with the express “role in caring for those who became severely ill” with COVID-19. The BBC reported that the unit has treated 800 people in 155 beds.
The Queen spoke to the construction team towards the end of her call, telling them: “It is very interesting, isn’t it, when there is some very vital thing, how everybody works together and pulls together – marvelous, isn’t it?”
There are growing concerns about Queen Elizabeth’s health
There has been increasing concern regarding the health of England’s head of state within the last year. Her Majesty has been forced to cancel numerous events in the last few months as she’s battled various health problems ranging from exhaustion to a sprained back, followed by COVID-19.
There have also been rumors that she now regularly uses a wheelchair. Thankfully though, she is back to light duties and is reportedly in “good spirits” and as “pin-sharp as ever.”
The Queen isn’t the only member of her family to catch COVID-19, Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles both tested positive a few days before Her Majesty. Charles had previously tested positive in March 2020, and Prince William is suspected of catching the illness in April 2020.