Swedish climate change activist Greta Thunberg is in isolation after catching a cold that she believes is “likely” COVID-19, the sickness caused by the novel coronavirus.
The 17-year-old on Tuesday posted a long message on Instagram, explaining her symptoms began on March 14 and included a sore throat and “shivers.”
“The last two weeks I’ve stayed inside,” she wrote. “When I returned from my trip around Central Europe I isolated myself (in a borrowed apartment away from my mother and sister) since the number of cases of COVID-19 (in Germany for instance) were similar to Italy in the beginning.”
She continued: “Around ten days ago I started feeling some symptoms, exactly the same time as my father – who traveled with me from Brussels. I was feeling tired, had shivers, a sore throat and coughed. My dad experienced the same symptoms, but much more intense and with a fever.”
Thunberg said she is unsure if she has the disease because Sweden does not test its citizens “unless you’re in need of emergent medical treatment” but thinks it’s “extremely likely” she does.
“Now I’ve basically recovered, but – AND THIS IS THE BOTTOM LINE: I almost didn’t feel ill,” she added. “My last cold was much worse than this! Had it not been for someone else having the virus simultainously I might not even have suspected anything. Then I would just have thought I was feeling unusually tired with a bit of a cough.”
Thunberg, who rose to international fame after campaigning around the world against climate change, stressed that people in her age group should stay at home to protect those who are at high risk, such as the elderly. She added that people should “remember to always take care of each other and help those in need.”
