'I could have died': Arizona Trump voters beg friends to take COVID seriously after getting hospitalized

A pair of Arizona residents who voted for President Donald Trump in 2016 are now imploring their friends to not make the same mistake they did when they refused to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously.

In an interview with CNN, Debi and Michael Patterson told reporter Omar Jimenez that they laughed off public health recommendations about protecting themselves against the disease.

"It was almost like a joke in our group of friends," Debi Patterson explained.

"Did you wear a mask?" Jimenez asked.

"Nope," she replied.

"Did you hang out with your friends as normal?" he asked, to which she nodded her head.

Debi had to be hospitalized and put on oxygen after coming down with the disease in June -- and she says she still hasn't fully recovered.

"Over a month later, how are you now?" Jimenez asked.

"Well, obviously, still short of breath, coughing, just the fatigue and dizziness, headaches almost daily," she replied. "It's almost like somebody hit you in the head."

She and her husband ended the interview by warning everyone to be careful and follow public health experts' recommendations.

"Keep your distances and wear a fricking mask," Michael said.

"It's ridiculous not to take this seriously," Debi said. "I could have died just like the next person."

Watch the video below.