It has been over 10 years since Camille Prats lost her first husband Anthony Linsangan to cancer. He was 31 years old and had just married the veteran actress months prior. In a 2011 interview, Camille revealed that she “couldn’t believe” it would happen to someone as young as Anthony was.
“Hindi ako makapaniwala kasi napakabata [niya]. That time he's turning 30 parang hindi totoo, [I thought] it's not possible for someone his age to acquire a disease like that,” she said. “[I thought] it could just be viral infection. When we found out that it was cancer, hindi ako makapaniwala but of course, we had hope.”
A decade later, now with three children and a second chance at love, the Munting Heredera actress opened up about recovering from what she considered the most painful moment of her life.
“Nung panahon na yun, I’ve never had anyone close to me pass away. Parang naisip ko na life has been so good to me, may bawi ‘to,” she shared in a vlog with Rica Peralejo-Bonifacio. “A few years later, I got married. [And] a few months after [our church wedding], we found out he had cancer. It seemed very fast.”
Instagram/camilleprats
Camille admits feeling lost, as she couldn’t believe that she was in a painful situation. “Kapag nag-g-grieve ka, hindi ka iyak nang iyak gabi-gabi. It will strike you in moments when you’re not prepared,” she shares. “It’s so painful that you can’t even breathe.”
However, it was her son Nathan that helped her slowly recover.
“It’s important that you decide to move forward as a person while grieving. Ang inspirasyon ko, ang motivation ko yung anak ko, kasi kailangan pa niya ako eh.
Na-realize ko nalang na 10 years ago, when I was in [the hospital] watching him breathe his last breath, hindi ko alam na ito yung 10 years after ko. At hindi ko yun malalaman unless I pushed through and continued to press on with life.”
*This story originally appeared on Cosmo.ph. Minor edits have been made by the Female Network editors.
