Canada Jab Injuries – Alysia – From Ontario, Canada
By Jab Injuries Global
Alysia – Ontario, Canada
On May 13th 2021, I got my first dose of my Pfizer vaccine. On May 14th 2021, I started to have unusual symptoms start to show up as I began to get muscle twitches all over my body (legs, arms, and face) — there was so many that I could not keep track but at least fifty to sixty. These muscle twitches then started to develop into pins and needles in my feet. I thought my legs kept falling asleep on top of having the muscle twitches. I kept trying to ignore it and thinking it was me needing to take it easy post-vaccination. However, this kept progressing despite rest, cutting out caffeine, and not working out hard. My pins and needles started to turn into sharp pins and feeling like I was being constantly stabbed in my legs, arms, and face with some numbness. I also got eye floaters in my left eye. Still ignoring this, I decided to go on a business trip that was pre-planned for Alberta but on the plane ride there, all my symptoms amplified and I blacked out for a few seconds and my legs started shaking uncontrollably. I also started to develop other symptoms as well like internal tremors and hand tremors. I constantly felt like I was vibrating or shaking hard on the inside but no one could see it externally — its as terrifying. I ended up going to a hospital in Alberta as I started to get strong symptoms constantly and wanted to get checked. This was on either May 20th or 21st 2021. During the emergency room visit, they weren’t sure what was going on but was hoping these symptoms would just fade and not progress — I was told to give it a few days but to come back if I couldn’t walk or talk or had slurred speech.
Once we returned to Ontario, I was still having all of the symptoms and there was no decrease. I was also having issues walking — I could limp but it was hard and painful. I couldn’t go very far. My head tremors were frequent as well as other symptoms. So, I reached out to my family doctor. He also wasn’t sure but said if I continued to experience these symptoms to go to the hospital again. I ended up going to Grand River in Waterloo as the doctor recommended to go there as they were known for their neurological treatment. At this visit, they checked my heart, did a urine test, blood work, COVID-19 test, basic neurological exam, and a CT of my head. All came back clear. The doctor told me that he had been seeing people with similar symptoms post-vaccine and they tend to be younger healthier/active adults like myself. At this point, I was experiencing symptoms for roughly three weeks — he said to give it another week and hopefully they would stop. He didn’t know much — he said I was in the minority and the vaccine was helping more people than it was causing adverse reactions so they didn’t know much about people like me. He also recommended I take the second dose when I could but said he would not know how I would react — he also saidI could get worse or continue to have these symptoms.
My symptoms continued. I had good days where they were more moderate and I could carry on and days where they were terrible and I couldn’t function. I even had days I would not accept what was happening and I tried to be “normal” for my daughter and family. I tried to do things like I use to but I got tired, weak, or worse. New symptoms kept popping up and certain ones would fade. At this point, I could walk easier but the tremors, twitches, migraines, visual difficulty, brain fog, and fatigue were higher. I tried to carry on with life as normal as I could. I tried to be a good mum and fiancé and try to go out and enjoy the better days…I didn’t want to showcase my lows to the world and I was also in denial and praying they would stop.
On July 6th 2021, my tremors in my hands came back very strong and caused tons of pain in my hands and arms. Little tasks like eating, typing, and moving caused so much pain on top of everything else I was dealing with. The migraine was also so intense that it felt like someone was stabbing me so I decided to make another trip to the emergency room at Brantford General. Here, I talked to a very compassionate doctor who also believed this was out of her scope — they ran blood and urine tests but all cam back clear. She was going to suggest an MRI but decided against it after speaking to a neurologist in Hamilton. They didn’t believe I had MS and that it was directly from the vaccine. It was best to see a neurologist at that point. So, they decided before moving forward with any tests, I should see him. The appointment was finally booked for July 27th 2021. So, I tried to manage my symptoms as much as I could until this zoom call appointment.
However, the days got worse roughly on the week of July 12th 2021 as I started to develop intense joint pain, muscle weakness, and muscle stiffness on both legs and arms. This made it harder and harder to function, especially with my other symptoms. I noticed I was getting more fatigued and having a harder time forming what I wanted to say and limping around or unable to walk for long but I was trying to hold off from yet another disappointing hospital visit.
On July 24th 2021, I tried to go to an infrared sauna to see if that would help relieve any pain I was experiencing in my joints and muscles but that day took a turn and I was so drained and in pain that I spent the whole day in bed in and out of sleep. This is very unlike me. The next day on July 25th 2021, I decided to try to go out with my daughter and fiancé but my legs started to have so much pain that they gave out and my daughter and fiancé constantly had to catch and support me — eating became too difficult because it would cause my hands to be so sore and weak. My migraines were intensifying with everything I did. No medications as or ever helped with any of the symptoms that I could get over the counter. No doctor at this point even prescribed any as they didn’t know what was happening. I tried to push through since the appointment was so close.
However, on July 26th 2021, this took a worse turn when I could no longer walk without falling. My sister has to carry me to the washroom — my family kept having to catch me as I would fall due to the joint pain and weakness. I couldn’t use the cane because my hands were too painful and weak. My pain moved from leg to leg so I could no longer lean on one for support. It got worse. I just kept falling — it was so scary. I also got very bad pain in my head, strong shock like sensations and vibrations in my legs that amplified the joint pain, and kept stuttering my speech and getting pins and needles up my leg. It was too much so I made yet another visit to the emergency room. This time, we went to Hamilton General since it was local to the neurologist I was going to be working with.
At this hospital, we received no tests — they did give an IV for hydration and some migraine meds (but they didn’t last long for relief) — they weren’t sure what to do. They were supposed to admit me since I could not walk at all without falling but despite all that, they sent me home in pain without an MRI or imaging to see what was happening to cause my symptoms to get worse. I felt defeated.
The next day, I had the zoom call with the neurologist but because no MRI had been done, he needed those tests to be complete before he could take next steps. He tried to book me for an MRI of my brain and cervical spine as well as an EMG to test nerve function. I was told these tests would take weeks or more likely months to get into and until then, I would receive no treatment. Not even for my migraines. He needed to rule out other potential issues/diseases before he could move forward. He did not say he saw others like me who had injuries from the vaccine but it was not Pfizer so he wasn’t sure if it was the same quite yet. I also got referred to a rheumatologist for my joint Pina and to see if they could help in any way — this too could take months to get into.
I felt so defeated once again — I felt like I was so far away from getting real answers and I could feel myself getting worse.
I ended up going to the emergency room again on August 1st 2021 in Oakville to get some help as I was still having issues walking quite a bit and I started to develop chest pain since I tried to go out to a store with my family and couldn’t walk for more than a few seconds without my legs giving out. It was a long night in the emergency room alone but I was finally admitted and they were going to finally do the testing I have been needing to clear me of certain diseases and other non-vaccine related issues. They decided to run a bunch of blood tests (too many to name), give me an MRI so I don’t have to wait months, and will be booking my EMG.
It’s now August 6th 2021 and I’m still here but should be sent home tomorrow. I’m waiting on my MRI results. I Have started to walk very short distances with a walker but pain comes back quickly. I still have my other symptoms — slight les but probably to do the rest since mine tend to act up with activity. I’m on Lyrica for nerve pain — it helped with my knees and hands but I haven’t been doing much to see how long this will last (should get a better picture when I go home). My EMG hasn’t been scheduled. I’ve been on blood thinners and done very minimal physiotherapy. I have also had a hand, knee, and chest x-ray all clear. No doctor can tell me if I will improve, when I would improve, if I will get worse or if I will be like this forever. I keep on being told there isn’t enough known about the vaccine to know. They are hoping in a few years doctor’s will start further research in adverse reactions but I don’t have a few years. I was told once we clear everything, we can go from there and it would point more to the vaccine but I still haven’t found someone who is going to helpmeet with this stage.
Also during this time, I was able to connect with many other people who are experiencing the same symptoms or similar symptoms post vaccine. This group is a diverse group of men and women that have taken one of the COVID-19 vaccines. Most are young healthy adults who are now living a completely different life than we once were. Our symptoms are so similar and it validates how real this is. They are all over Canada and internationally. I also get new messages every day of other individuals dealing with these adverse reactions. Some of these are seeking help and some are nervous to share their story due to backlash. So, I’m determined to be a voice during all of this to help myself and others like me. We have developed a support group and help each other anyway we can through resource share and emotional support. We deserve answers and we deserve to get back to where we were pre-vaccination. We put our trust in the doctors and the government when getting this vaccine. We thought we were doing the righting. Now we should be able to have someone listen to us and offer help when we are struggling with adverse reactions. We also should not be judged for embracing our good days, trying to carry on with our life as normal as we can. We shouldn’t be judged or said we are faking when we spend days in bed to cope or show videos of our symptoms. We have the right to not want to share every moment of our journey and more. We should not have to defend ourselves constantly to prove our stories. We should not be treated poorly or called anti-vaxxers because we took the vaccine. We tried to do our part and it put us in a worse situation.
We aren’t scaring anyone or telling anyone what to do. We are sharing our story in hopes of helping someone or getting help for ourselves.
I also want our voices to be heard as countries start to implement vaccine passports. We should not be treated like outcasts because our health conditions prevent us from getting fully vaccinated. Public Health has personally wrote me a recommendation from their doctor saying he does not suggest the second dose. Sorry, we shouldn’t be forced to gamble with our lives and take another dose just to take part in normal activities. This just isn’t fair. There is a big group of us that have been affected and we deserve to be seen and heard. We hope we can gain support from others whether you are dealing with a vaccine injury or not — we need help getting our voices heard and that is why I chose to share my story and continue to do so.
