Pink says surviving COVID-19 with her 3-year-old son Jameson was “the most physically and emotionally challenging experience” she has endured in motherhood.
In a Saturday essay published by NBC News, the singer said that before Mother’s Day on May 10, she was “reflecting on the wonderful, yet challenging gift of time that life in COVID-19 quarantine has meant for me and my children.”
“To be a mom, a teacher, a cook, a confidant, and a bada** dream chaser all at once is no small feat,” the 40-year-old wrote. “Mamas everywhere, you are doing amazing. As parts of our country start down the long-road to recovery, I find myself wondering what happens next? We’re defining a new normal for our own children and working through it day by day, one step at a time. The U.S. is moving forward, but this virus knows no boundaries. And I’m thinking about the children and families around the world who are just beginning to know its effects. Do they have what they need to be safe? Do they have what they need to be healthy?”
Pink continued, “Battling COVID-19 along with my 3-year-old son was the most physically and emotionally challenging experience I have gone through as a mother. Weeks after receiving our test results, my son was still ill and feverish. It was a terrifying time, not knowing what might come next.”
On April 3, Pink, who shares Jameson and daughter Willow, 8, with husband and ex-motocross racer Carey Hart, shared on Instagram: “Two weeks ago my three-year old son, Jameson, and I are were showing symptoms of COVID-19. Fortunately, our primary care physician had access to tests and I tested positive. My family was already sheltering at home and we continued to do so for the last two weeks following the instruction of our doctor. Just a few days ago we were re-tested and are now thankfully negative.”
The singer slammed the U.S. government for “not make testing more widely accessible” and called the virus “serious and real.” She donated $1 million dollars, split between a Philadelphia health facility and the City of Los Angeles Mayor’s Emergency COVID-19 Crisis Fund. “These next two weeks are crucial: please stay home. Please. Stay. Home,” she wrote in her post.
A week later, Pink explained to Ellen DeGeneres that Jameson developed a fever only days into the March quarantine, along with chest and stomach pains. “It was terrifying,” she said. Then, Pink got a sore throat except she “never had a fever. I never had what they tell you to look for.” They both got tested and slowly recovered.
Pink pointed out in her Saturday essay, “But our story is not unique; there are mothers all over America, and the world, that are facing this same uncertainty every single day. Not every family, especially those living on reservations, or in refugee camps, slums, or favelas, are able to practice social distancing. In many parts of the world it can take hours just to access water, and even then, soap may be an impossible luxury.
She wrote, “As we begin to envision what life will look like on the other side of this, we need to put ourselves in the shoes of moms around the globe and consider doing what we can to help keep their babies safe. How can we partake in ensuring their access to the basic human rights that so many of us are afforded each and every day?”
The singer praised the organization UNICEF for “getting supplies into the hardest to reach places, helping governments and communities prevent the disease from spreading by training health workers, assisting teachers and schools, and working with all levels of government. We might not physically be able to be there for every child, but it’s a comfort to know that organizations like UNICEF are.”
