'The only way to escape is vaccination alone' - Ravi Ashwin shares personal experience with COVID-19, urges all to vaccinate

As India continues to grapple with a deadly second wave of the coronavirus, infecting new people and taking lives every day at a rampant pace, more and more responsible celebrities are coming forward to raise awareness, urge people to respect the protocols in place for their security and share their experiences.

Recently, Team India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took to YouTube to urge people to wear masks, sanitize their hands frequently, and most importantly, get vaccinated if they are eligible for it, as early as possible. The 34-year-old was recently participating in the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League, which had to be postponed after multiple Covid-19 cases were reported inside the bio-bubble created for the tournament.

Notably, Ashwin took a break from the tournament midway owing to the conditions in his family, where multiple people fell ill and the cricketer chose to be alongside them in a time of distress. He was one of the first players to leave the tournament midway, after which the IPL recorded multiple opt-outs due to covid-related concerns.

My whole family got infected: Ashwin

The 34-year-old cricketer took to his YouTube channel to clear misconceptions about the vaccines by sharing his personal experience with the virus.

“I talk about the seriousness of the second wave of COVID and about the roller coaster of last few days my family experienced. And also, I stress about the importance of vaccines and how important it is for us to give a better tomorrow for our kids and how vaccines are the only solution for that,” he wrote.

In the video posted on May 6, Ashwin shared that his children, his father, and even his wife’s parents, besides his aunt and uncle, had contracted COVID-19.

“I was playing IPL and therefore my wife and my parents didn’t inform me. But my kids got severe fever with diarrhoea for 3-4 days. In hindsight, my wife told me that she didn’t know what to do and she gave medicines and despite that, the fever didn’t reduce.”

“My whole family got infected. My father was doing well for the first five days, but then his oxygen levels dropped below 85. He had to get hospitalised since he had trouble breathing. His oxygen levels didn’t improve for many days, despite being discharged. My father had taken both doses of the vaccine. He has comorbidities and I can guarantee you that the main reason for us being able to save him is because of the vaccine,” he added.

Urging all for getting vaccinated, he said: “You can be asymptomatic, but you can still cause severe havoc to a family affecting its main breadwinner or even a kid. The only way to escape from this coronavirus wave is vaccination alone. No doubts on that whatsoever. Therefore, please do get yourself vaccinated,” he added.

Ashwin had earlier tweeted, “Heartbreaking to see what’s happening around my country! I am not in the healthcare fraternity, but my sincere gratitude to each of them. I would also like to make an earnest appeal to every Indian to exercise caution and stay safe.”

Watch Ashwin’s vide here: