Amy Schumer revealed on Nov. 6 that she experienced every parent’s worst nightmare: her young child had to be hospitalized after coming down with Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV). “This was the hardest week of my life,” wrote Amy, 41, when captioning a gallery of “behind-the-scenes” photos from her recent stint hosting Saturday Night Live. “I missed Thursday rehearsals when my son was rushed to ER and admitted for RSV. Shout out to all the parents going through this right now. I got to be with him the whole day at the hospital, and the beautiful humans at @nbcsnl couldn’t have been more supportive.”
Thankfully, Amy revealed that Gene — the son she and her husband Chris Fisher welcomed in 2019 — was “home and better.” From there, she took a moment to be thankful to all those who helped her through the “hardest week” ever. “The reason this show is so fun to do isn’t actually the performance or the show itself. It’s getting to spend time with the people there. The cast and the writers, of course but the people who are behind the scenes making it run smoothly are my favorite. The crew! Donna. Jerry. Jodi. Genna. Tom Wally, and on and on. Lorne has assembled the most talented people with the kindest hearts. Thank you everyone there and to the doctors and nurses who helped us.”
Dubbed “the worst pediatric-care crisis in decades” by The Atlantic, the U.S. has been hit by a massive wave of early viral infections. RSV is the primary culprit, but the flu, rhinovirus, enterovirus, and SARS-CoV-2 are also contributing to the crisis. “At Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, in Maryland, staff has pitched a tent outside the emergency department to accommodate overflow; Connecticut Children’s Hospital mulled calling in the National Guard,” writes the publication. One medical professional in the report says that the crisis has been going on since September, with another saying that the crisis is as bad as the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020.
RSV is a “ common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Most people recover in a week or two, but RSV can be serious, especially for infants and older adults. RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small airways in the lung) and pneumonia (infection of the lungs) in children younger thanone1 year of age in the United States.” Infants, young chi,ldren and kids with weakened immune systems are at risk.
Symptoms include a runny nose, a decrease in appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever, and wheezing. To prevent transmission, the CDC recommends covering your coughs and sneezes with tissues or your upper sleeve; washing your hands frequently; disinfecting frequently touched surfaces, and avoiding close contact if you have cold-like symptoms. See here for more information.