InstagramTammin Sursok's husband, Sean McEwen, has contracted coronavirus.
The Pretty Little Liars alum made the announcement in an Instagram post on Wednesday, Jan. 13. While the 37-year-old actress initially questioned sharing the news, she ultimately decided to be upfront with her followers.
"I've started and stopped this post so many times," she began. "Do I write it? Do I not? But I realize that the reason I created this account and hopefully why you follow is because I'm honest with you. You see all the good and bad and the in-between. So here goes....My husband has Covid."
Sursok admitted she's scared. "Today I'm not as scared as yesterday but yesterday I felt very out of control," she continued. "It was rough and touch and go. All the hospitals are full and his fever of 103 wouldn't break for days and it got to a very scary place."
The star also informed her fans that she and her daughters—Phoenix, 7, and Lennon, nearly 2—have tested negative for COVID-19 twice and that they "have had no symptoms for a while."
"We have been quarantining and following all recommendations and guidelines," Sursok wrote. "We have been in the same place in Austin for two months now. Haven't seen friends and family, haven't eaten out, p is homeschooled. The only place we could have got it is the grocery store bc we haven't been near anyone and the whole family is always masked."
Near the end of her post, Sursok addressed her followers directly. "Covid is real," she wrote. "It's scary and I now see it firsthand. I've been really scared and in a dark place and I'm writing this to say I'm struggling and I love you all and this community. Thank you for listening. We are in this together. We are. I promise you. Please wear a mask for yourself for other people. This is not something you want to get. Thank you for being here. You light up my life. Always. T xo."
In a separate Instagram Stories video, Sursok thanked her fans for their support and gave them an update on McEwen's health.
"He's doing a little better today," she tearfully said that same day. "So, his fever is down to 102, 101."
The celebrity also further opened up about her decision to talk about her husband's coronavirus battle.
"It seems so weird to even be on this platform and Stories to even talk about this stuff," she added. "But I feel like I have to because there are so many people who are struggling and are going through this and you don't think it's going to be you and your family until it is."
Sursok went on to describe how she's been so strong for her family this past week. "And I even feel bad if this is the wrong way to do it," she continued. "Because I think we feel ashamed to feel pain and be scared because we feel like we always have to be so strong all the time. And we see on social media people just killing it and everything is great and everything's perfect, but life isn't like that for me, for anyone."
As a result, Sursok wanted to be transparent. "I thought, 'Don't say anything. Don't say anything. Don't say anything,'" she said. "But I can't have all of you on here and lie to you and pretend that everything's OK when it's not."
At the end of her video, she reiterated her message and urged her followers to wear a mask.
"COVID is real. It's scary," she said at one point. "And I know some people just get a cold, or they feel like they just have a cold or a flu, but a lot of people don't. And my husband is really fit and healthy and all the hospitals are full....Anyway, be safe. Please wear a mask."
Later on, she returned to the social platform to say how "overwhelmed" she was by her followers' love and support.
"Maybe being open is the only way to truly connect," she wrote. "Because of all of you I'm hopeful for the future. Love wins, always. And I'm grateful we are in each other's lives albeit over this strange thing called social media."