‘Yellowstone’ Spinoff Star Danielle Vasinova Shares Her COVID Battle: ‘I Died for Three Minutes’
Plus, how the actress repaid the nurse who saved her life
Danielle Vasinova, star of Yellowstone’s hit spinoff 1923, shares the harrowing story of her battle with COVID-19. In an interview with PEOPLE, the star detailed how her heart stopped for several minutes, causing her to die “for three minutes.” We look into what happened to the actress—plus the heartfelt moment between her and her ER nurse—below!
Danielle Vasinova’s battle with COVID
At age 42, Danielle Vasinova reflects on the moment she mistook her 2019 COVID-19 symptoms for the flu.
“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.
“I felt like I was going to die.”
Since Vasinova was admitted in December 2019, there was not a lot of information available about COVID at the time, allowing both her and doctors to believe that she was just suffering from a weird strain of another respiratory infection.
Vasinova recalls the chaotic emergency room scene, with medical staff racing to save her life: “People were running around me, and a tiny girl jumped on top of my chest and began pumping, pumping, pumping. And then he [the actress’s uncle] saw my heartbeat on the monitor just go. Flatlined.
“On Dec. 12, 2019, I died for three minutes.
“I had complete organ failure,” she continued. “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.”
What Danielle Vasinova remembers about ‘dying’
Vasinova said that she does remember quite a bit from the three minutes when she was dead, detailing that she “didn’t see the light or a tunnel, but they say it can come back to you in flashbacks.”
“I did, however, start to see a lot of angel numbers everywhere,” she said. “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.'”
5555 is famously known as the angel number for change, and 7777 is the one for letting you know you’re on the right path, which makes sense for the actress since soon after her health scare, she booked her role in 1923, which would launch her into Hollywood stardom.
A heartfelt thank you to her nurse
To express gratitude, Vasinova returned to the hospital to thank the team that saved her life, especially her ER nurse. Namely, she wanted to meet the exact 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,'” Vasinova said.
“I didn’t know if she was going to recognize me, but when she opened the door, I started crying, and she just lost it. She told me she never knows who lives or dies after they get transferred. She just gave me the biggest hug. Because I’d been gone for three full minutes. But I came back.”
How Danielle Vasinova is doing now
Five years later, Vasinova said that she is doing better but still finds herself thinking about her “death,” saying, “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 is currently getting ready to star in another Yellowstone spinoff entitled The Madison, which is set to air in 2025.
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