Hilary Duff is recovering from a breakthrough case of COVID-19. The How I Met Your Father actor shared the news alongside a photo of herself on Instagram recently.
“That delta… she’s a little bitch,” Duff wrote in an Instagram Stories post, per People, referring to the highly transmissible delta coronavirus variant that’s now the most common strain of the virus in the U.S. “Symptoms: bad headache. No taste or smell. Sinus pressure. Brain fog. Happy to be vaxxed,” she wrote, ending with a peace sign emoji.
It’s uncommon but possible to get a COVID-19 infection despite being fully vaccinated. And as Duff implies, being vaccinated can help prevent severe COVID-19 symptoms in the (again, rare) event of a breakthrough infection. In fact, White House officials and public health experts recently announced a plan to offer booster shots of the two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines to the public eight months after their first doses in an effort to keep people safe amid the delta surge.
Luckily, Duff’s symptoms seem pretty much on par with what we’ve come to expect with a milder COVID-19 illness. The most common symptoms typically include fever, chills, headaches, cough, fatigue, muscle aches, sore throat, congestion, and a new loss of taste or smell, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the more severe end, someone might experience difficulty breathing or a feeling of pressure or pain in the chest that doesn’t go away, which are indications that emergency medical attention is needed.
But just because the infection is technically “mild” doesn’t mean it’s not unpleasant. As former E! correspondent Catt Sadler pointed out during her recent breakthrough infection, the symptoms can still be rough even if they aren’t an emergency. “If you are vaccinated, don’t let your guard down,” Sadler wrote on Instagram. “Delta is relentless and highly contagious and grabbed ahold of me even after getting vaccinated.”