Lisa Whelchel, 'Survivor Philippines' Star has West Nile Virus, 'Facts of Life' Star Still Recovering from 'Secret' Steve Cauble Divorce

Reports confirmed in September that former 'Facts of Life' turned 'Survivor Philippines' star Lisa Whelchel secretly divorced her husband of 24 years, Steve Cauble, back in March. If recovering from such heartbreak weren't enough, now the 49-year-old must face another personal battle - she was recently diagnosed with West Nile virus! Whelchel tweeted her unfortunate diagnosis on Tuesday (Nov. 13), insisting to fans that other than being extremely tired, she's doing pretty well.

Whelchel sent out this Twitter message on Tuesday:

@LisaWhelchel: "Dr. just called with blood test results...I have West Nile. Ugh. I'm fine, just tired. Takes a year to recover. :(."

There has been no connection between Whelchel's diagnosis with West Nile virus and her recent stint on the 25th season of the popular nature survival show, "Survivor" (which wrapped up filming in April). The mild disease is commonly spread by mosquitoes, and common symptoms include fatigue and body aches. Although rarely life-threatening, it does take a while to recover from and get out of the body's system.

Even if her appearance on "Survivor" were to blame for the West Nile fever, Whelchel doesn't have any regrets - she told People magazine in September, "I didn't have one moment where I regretted being out there. In fact, the contrary. I was having an adventure; I was doing something that was a challenge, that was very hard."

Whelchel, a devote Christian, met her ex-husband Steven Cauble at a prayer group in 1986. Whelchel finally revealed to People in September, "The divorce was final on March 1, and [I] went out to be on Survivor on March 10. Going out to Survivor was helpful for me, to divert my attention and not just dwell on the loss. I just never thought it would happen to me. It was painful to realize that it wasn't going to work out."

Following her stint on "Survivor," Whelchel posted this about her life-changing experience on her personal blog:

"I don't think 'fun' is the word I would use to describe my experience. Those days on the island were the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. It pushed me to my extreme limits physically, mentally, spiritually, and especially, emotionally. I'm so very grateful for the opportunity and I'm so glad I did it but I think it's like childbirth...I may need to put a few years behind me and some perspective in front of me before I would ever consider doing it again."

Even so, hopefully the experience helped to alleviate some of the pain and heartbreak after ending her longtime marriage to Cauble.

As for the West Nile virus, Whelchel recently tweeted:

@LisaWhelchel: "I've been very touched by all the sweet tweets. Other than tired, I'm feeling fine & expecting a full recovery. So grateful for you. Thanks!"