Soap Veteran Greg Rikaart Reveals Details About His Coronavirus Battle

As the country does its part to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus, one soap star has already had to face the disease of COVID-19. Greg Rikaart, who played Leo on Days of our Lives and continues to play Kevin Fisher on The Young and the Restless reveals what he went through during the scary experience.

Greg Rikaart Opens Up About COVID-19

Rikaart had to distance himself from his real-life son, Monty, set to turn 4 in June, and from husband Robert Sudduth, writer/producer, due to his testing positive for coronavirus. The actor, who is doing much better now, went through quite an ordeal last month.

“What’s extra cruel about this disease is this robs you of [being with your loved ones],” Rikaart told USAToday. Thanks to technology, however, the actor was able to FaceTime with his son and read him stories. “There were some nights where I couldn’t get through a page or two without coughing and having difficulty breathing. It was brutal.”

The Daytime Emmy-winner’s other symptoms included chills, sleeplessness, and the inability to both taste and smell. One of the challenging parts of his ordeal was not seeing improvements throughout his battle. “[T]hat part was scary,” he related, “because I never knew if I was at peak of how bad it was going to get, or if it was going to get worse.

“It was a long, long battle, and I’m grateful that I never ended up having to go to the hospital,” he said. “It was 12 days of fever, and it was definitely a really challenging experience.”

Rikaart’s family and his pals in the soap world helped him through his journey. “In my stronger moments I felt like I’ve got this,” he said. “I have too much to live for on the other side of this door, and I’m not going anywhere. But I would be lying if I didn’t say that in my more vulnerable moments that I was not afraid, because I certainly was.”

Soap Hub wishes Rikaart a continued recovery! The actor stays in touch with his followers via social media platforms. He recently posted a photo showing that he’s ready to be reunited soon with his hairstylist! “Haircuts are dumb anyway,” the actor joked.