Actress Danielle Vasinova, who stars in the Yellowstone prequel 1923 and the show’s upcoming spinoff The Madison, has shared that she died during her battle with COVID-19.
Lucky enough, she lived to live the tale. Vasinova’s heart had stopped for three minutes while she was hospitalized with the disease on 12 December 2019, even before the world knew the illness was going to be a pandemic.
Vasinova died for three minutes
In an interview with People, the 42-year-old actress shared, “On Dec. 12, 2019, I died for three minutes.”
The actress said that at the time, she thought she was “coming down with the flu,” having contracted the disease before it became widespread in the US.
She initially went to the urgent care
“I went to urgent care in downtown L.A., and they decided it was strep and sent me home with some antibiotics. But by the next day, I could barely walk. My legs wouldn’t move. It was bizarre,” Vasinova shared.
Vasinova was rushed to the emergency room
After having been sent home with antibiotics and waking up unable to feel her legs, the actress recalled, “I felt like I was going to die.”
Her uncle was able to rush her to the emergency room and told her the story of what happened next.
The actress had lost her heartbeat
In recalling the story, her uncle told her the situation felt like a scene from a movie.
“He said people were running around me, and a tiny girl jumped on top of my chest and began pumping, pumping, pumping. And then he saw my heartbeat on the monitor just go. Flatlined,” she shared.
Vasinova had no pulse for three minutes
The actress shared that for a long three minutes, there was no heartbeat as an ER nurse repeatedly pumped her heart until it started beating again.
After this traumatic event, she had to be moved to the ICU and put into an induced coma.
The actress’s organs had failed
Explaining why she had to be moved to the ICU, Vasinova shared “I had complete organ failure.”
“I went from young and healthy to this infection that completely took over my body all of a sudden. It just came on, and it just rocked my world,” she added.
Vasinova doesn’t remember the occurrence
Vasinova revealed that she doesn’t have specific memories of being dead for three minutes but that since the incident, she’s been feeling a higher power around her, as well as angels.
“I didn’t see the light or a tunnel but they say it can come back to you in flashbacks,” she shared.
Vasinova senses angels around her
Continuing about the changes she has felt since she was legally dead for three minutes, Vasinova shared, “I did, however, start to see a lot of angel numbers everywhere. I would see sequences like 5555, 7777. It was bizarre, but something was telling me, ‘There’s something more for you. You weren’t meant to go just yet. You’re meant to do something else.’”
It’s difficult to convey such an experience
The actress went on, “It’s hard to even describe how I feel, but I’m so much more connected. This felt like the turning point in my life. The death and the rebirth. I know to take nothing for granted. Life is so precious, and it is such a gift. We’re here to do some good in the world, to be of service, and to be forever grateful.”
Vasinova went to meet the nurse who saved her
Following her recovery from COVID-19, the actress went to meet the nurse who brought her back to life.
“I found out her name was Ruby, so I went back to the hospital with a bracelet with a tiny ruby in it just to say, ‘Thank you for saving my life,’” she shared.
