gardasil illness

Before and After Gardasil

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On January 29th, 2011, I went to a gynecological appointment with my fiancé to discuss birth control pills and get my first set of HPV Gardasil vaccinations. I believed the vaccine was important. I personally had never taken the time to research vaccinations or Gardasil. I believed it was a part of the ‘healthcare’ system.  I had seen the commercials and wanted to be ‘one less girl’ affected by cervical cancer. I didn’t know the ingredients, the real statistics on HPV, cervical cancer, or even how long it had been studied and tested. I knew nothing about the vaccine but trusted my doctors.

My Health before Gardasil

Prior to that visit, I had been dealing with spine issues and pain since I was a teenager. In October of 2010 I had another injury that put me out of work and aggravated my spine issues. I was prescribed heavy doses of muscle relaxers.  I had been taking those medications for the six months prior, but had weaned myself off a couple weeks before my Ob/Gyn checkup. The muscle relaxers were causing gastrointestinal (GI) complications in my body, exacerbating GI issues I already had. I thought this appointment would be beneficial and I was happy I had weaned off muscle relaxers two weeks prior. I was hoping to keep what small progress I had going.

My First Gardasil Injection

Within the first few days and for the week after the Gardasil shot, I was bedridden and sick with what we thought was a bad flu. It was also possible I was having a reaction from the muscle relaxer withdrawal or the side effects of my newly prescribed birth control pills. I stopped taking the birth control pills after eight days and my symptoms worsened.

My mother and fiancé remember the physical changes when I wasn’t feeling well, but those few days after Gardasil have blurred together for me. I was so sick. The next days, weeks and months to come, I experienced the worst nausea, weakness and most severe pain in every crevice of my stomach and body that I have ever felt in my life. Even the other stomach sensitivities and spine/back issues I had experienced previously paled in comparison to what happened to me after getting Gardasil.

The Doctors

We went to every doctor appointment and tested everything we possibly could. The tests kept coming back ‘fine’. (Ironically, they never tested for heavy metal poisoning, which we found later I had. If any doctor would have known those symptoms, I had nearly all of them, perhaps I wouldn’t have suffered for so long.) None of the doctors said there could be any connection with Gardasil, but we suspected otherwise. In fact, most told us just the opposite; that my symptoms were definitely not caused by Gardasil. It was not until blood tests taken outside of my doctor’s office nine months later that we discovered the toxic stress, heavy metal poisoning and other toxins were filtering through my bloodstream. (Gardasil ingredients included; we finally connected it with certainty here.)

The Pain and Nausea

During this period of many months, for twenty four hours a day, every moment of my life, I was nauseas, sick to my stomach and alternating puking. I could not drink water or eat anything without getting sick. Digesting anything was extremely painful. It hurt to move, to walk or to do anything. I could not even wear jeans around my waist for seven months because of how painful my stomach felt. I discovered new levels of dizziness. I was losing weight rapidly, up to 15 pounds a month, with limited activity.

Nicole Alexandra Before and After Gardasil
Left: me in December 2010, one month before Gardasil. Right: a year and a half later, July 2012 after the extreme weight loss post Gardasil.

I tried to focus and meditate healing into my body to counteract what was happening. I lost 100 pounds within that first year and a half. My diastolic blood pressure dropped to the 50’s/40’s. It used to be consistently around 120’s/60-70’s. My hair fell out at the rate of my weight loss – quickly. Even my tongue turned a grey black color in the center, and my eyes turned a slight yellow.

The most challenging and embarrassing issues were the gastrointestinal problems, which were each horrifying on their own. Every time I had to use the restroom, it made me more ill than I already felt, and the pain I experienced is something I will never forget. The pain in my stomach and body was disorientating. It physically hurt everywhere. I struggled focusing, verbalizing my anxiety or frustrations because I was feeling so toxic in my own body. I was in more pain, more exhausted and more fatigued than I had ever felt. It was often overwhelming and uncomfortable, especially trying to sleep with comfort or ease. Meanwhile through all of this, I was told by my doctors that I had Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and to go on a whole grain diet. That was the only advice they had for us, after all my symptoms, IBS. We knew we needed other help and resources.

Family Support

My family focused all of their efforts into helping me any way they could. I was already seeing an acupuncturist outside of my insurance every week and she was documenting my progressing issues as time went on.

We bought vitamins, herbs, protein powders, digestive enzymes, probiotics, and fiber supplements to treat IBS issues. We began the first of many dramatic diet changes to facilitate gut healing. After months of using these products, they were helping on a small scale by not making things feel worse, with some slight benefits. The nausea and pain were still constant. My back and whole body were amongst the most excruciating pains and because of the pain, my mobility, energy and strength were limited. As the months went by, I became further immobilized. I walked as much as I was able. I tried swimming during the summer, but it exacerbated my pain greatly. My physical therapist told me, “This was as good as I was going to get.” We didn’t stick around with her after that.

Out of Desperation

We were at our tip of desperation after I returned from a two day trip with my fiancé. We went out of town to see friends. It was traveling, something I hadn’t done during this year of many changes. We were trying to make it work even with my health complications. It was wonderful seeing my friends, but my body could not recover from exhaustion after returning. We sought additional help. The physicians we saw during this time had not helped, many would not help and denied my symptoms. It was my acupuncturist, who stuck with us and tried to heal me. She gave me the name of a chiropractor in the area. It was worth a try.

Chiropractic Health

One of our biggest blessings through this chaos was finding chiropractic care and meeting my chiropractor, Dr. McKillican. He recognized the crisis my health and nervous system were in and was the first sincere and genuine doctor that strived to help us. A chiropractor was not on any of my insurance or among the recommendations suggested to me, ever. In fact, I was advised to stay away from them earlier in life. I know with my whole being that chiropractic saved my life, especially during this crucial time of disease and sickness. I have been getting weekly adjustments for nearly two years, beginning seven months after getting Gardasil. Chiropractic adjustments have made significant and dramatic improvements in healing and strengthening my nervous system and body. Regular adjustments work on our nervous system to remove nerve interference within us and to promote the body’s natural ability to heal itself.

 Vital Hematology and Nutrition

Nine months after Gardasil, I worked with a vital hematologist to detoxify my body naturally. We used a focused diet that included: juicing specific veggies, fruits, herbs, multiple vitamins, digestive enzymes, colloidal silver, olive leaf extract, glutathione, aloe vera juice. This regime greatly helped with my unbearable, chronic nausea.  It seems to have reduced the intensity of pain throughout my stomach. I have had significant improvements in GI health.

This past year I also began working with a nutritionist to deal with the continuous mending needed to repair my GI issues, adrenal dysfunction, energy, appetite/food challenges and over all internal damages. I am thankful beyond words for the healing I’ve experienced, and despite the pain and the many challenges I have faced post Gardasil, my body is mending at the rate it can.  I use my energy to focus on this.

Two Years Post Gardasil

The issues I am still working on healing and mending are different two and half years after Gardasil are the autoimmunity changes. These include:  gastrointestinal issues, body pain, appetite dysregulation and the ability to eat enough, malabsorption of nutrients, low blood pressure and dizziness, energy, sensitivity to cold temperature and chemicals.

Food and my appetite can be very overwhelming sometimes.  I often don’t want or have the desire to eat or I get full too quickly. I also get really hungry all at once, often unexpectedly and painfully. The food and appetite issues are a constant work in progress that is still very complex. They have become somewhat easier to work with now than in the years before. I find focusing on ratios of carbs, fats and protein I need helps. I have also eliminated foods with gluten, GMO or that are processed. I no longer eat foods that are spicy or acidic either. I eat raw organic veggies only juiced because my GI tract cannot tolerate the un-juiced vegetables.  I watch my sugar intake, including many fruits, and other foods that I am sensitive to. I eat whole foods, organic vegetables and fruits, good fats (butter and coconut oil have helped immensely here) and as much healthy, grass fed, organic protein and protein shakes as my body needs to be balanced. All this has helped substantially.

My healthy lifestyle is vital to keep my progress going. With nutrition, vitamins, medicinal herbs, supplements, regular chiropractic adjustments, removing as many toxins from my environment, and adding as much movement, exercise, walking or stretching as I can, I am slowly improving. I also use coffee enemas and drink alkalized water (and lots of it). My body now seems to be on the path it needs to recover from the atrocity that Gardasil caused. Every day is different with pain and energy levels, but I focus on the blessings, because I know how much worse it can be.

The Support of My Family

It has taken a substantial amount of money, time and sacrifices from my extraordinary mother and fiancé to care for me post Gardasil. Without them, none of this progress could have been possible. I am more grateful and humbled than ever to be alive and for all the amazing, most abundant love and support of people I’m blessed to share my life with. I could not have come this far without these wonderful people.

Gardasil changed my health, my life, and family’s lives forever; physically, mentally emotionally, financially, and educationally. What I can give and share with others through this experience is the truth, my experiences, and the real facts and statistics regarding Gardasil. I plan to do this until this vaccine exists no more.

Participate in Research

Hormones MatterTM is conducting research on the side effects and adverse events associated with Gardasil and its counterpart Cervarix. If you or your daughter has had either HPV vaccine, please take this important survey. The Gardasil Cervarix HPV Vaccine Survey.

To take one of our other Real Women. Real Data.TM surveys, click here.

To sign up for our newsletter and receive weekly updates on the latest research news, click here.

A Day in the Life of Alexis Wolf: Six Years After Gardasil

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Alexis is now 20 years old. Six years have passed since her first injection of Gardasil. Life has changed drastically since then. After the Gardasil vaccine, Alexis developed encephalopathy, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and a horrible seizure disorder that has yet to be controlled. Read the first part of Alexis’ Gardasil journey here.

Post Gardasil Brain Injury

Alexis’ brain injury post Gardasil is in the frontal lobe. This part of the brain controls so much of who we are. This has left Alexis with the mental capacity of about an 8 year old. She gets very confused easily and struggles with short term and long term memory so she requires constant supervision with frequent redirection on everyday tasks. Her skill level of preparing meals for herself and daily personal hygiene is almost nonexistent. She can no longer take showers due to the danger of having a seizure and falling. I have to help her take a bath and make sure she gets clean. I have to assist in washing her hair to make sure it gets clean. I also have to get her clothes ready for her. She can usually dress herself with little assistance.

Post Gardasil Bowel and Bladder Problems

Since receiving Gardasil, Alexis progressively lost bladder and bowel control.  She has to wear adult diapers.  Sometimes she will put her fingers inside her anus to try to help herself go #2. Although we have discussed this with all of her doctors and with her, telling her it is very dangerous for her and everyone one else, she cannot control herself. We make her wash her hands OFTEN. I wipe things down with Lysol wipes OFTEN.

Post Gardasil Pain

Alexis has often expressed frustration, depression and suicidal thoughts as to her present life and her future. She can be swift to anger and have great mood swings. She will slam doors, throw things, spit at us and call us a variety of cuss words. She is miserable most of the time. She complains about pain constantly. We have been turned away by three different pain specialist because they review her records and tell me she is “too complex” for them to treat. The only thing she has to help her with the pain is medical marijuana in the form of tinctures and vapors. When her head hurts really badly she will hit her forehead with the palm of her hand and say “brain get better, brain get better…” She also complains about all over body aches, sharp pains in her chest, joint and muscle pain. She will tell us that everything looks scary, strange and unusual even herself. The best description she was able to give us was that it looked like the walls were melting and people looked like cartoons. I had to take her out of high school for the above reasons. Her teachers were not very patient with her and they would push her buttons so one day she hit one of her teachers in the arm. The school called the police so I took her out of school.

Post Gardasil Seizures

Alexis’ speech patterns can often digress to repetitive statements over and over. This occurs without the knowledge that she is engaged in that behavior. Her motivation level is very low due to her brain injury. Getting her to do anything is quite the struggle. Almost every task is labored and takes lots of patience from the person helping her. Often at times she will flat out refuse to move and begs to take a nap. She naps off and on all day every day. We really do not know how long she sleeps at night but we think it is no longer than two hours at a time. The seizures happen all the time and they wake her up while she is sleeping. She is usually unable to fall back to sleep, so she wanders the house and searches for food. She has horrible impulse control and she is not able to tell if she is full or not. We have to keep the fridge and the pantry locked up at all times so she does not eat herself into a coma. If she eats a full meal and then has a seizure she will forget that she has just eaten and she begs for food saying that she is starving. We also lock up her medications because she will forget that she has taken them and try to take more even though I store them in those daily dose medicine boxes. She can have many, many seizures in a day. She takes anti-seizure meds and she also has a device implanted in her chest called a VNS therapy. It is supposed to reduce or stop her seizures but so far we have not really noticed a difference. She has had it for 3 years and soon she will be due for a battery replacement that will require another surgery. The battery should have lasted 5-10 years but the doctors have made so many adjustments on the therapy levels that the battery only has a few months left of power.

Alexis having a Seizure in 2010

Six Years and Counting

In the past six years we have had to deal with many people who do not understand the side-effects of the Gardasil vaccine. We have been accused of horrible things. We have had to endure being investigated by Child Protective Services, Adult Protective Services, police, detectives and more. Family, friends and neighbors have turned their heads and left us behind. Alexis’ father has not spoken to her in two years and all the help he had once offered is nonexistent. The government services that should support Alexis and her brain injury are bogged down so she is on a waiting list of over 40,000 people. I was told she MIGHT get services in 2019 when her name comes up next on the list. The way things have been going it is possible that all money and services may dry up and go away before her name even comes up.

Alexis’ inability to live independently will require lifelong care and assistance. I worry all the time about what will happen to her when I am no longer able to care for her. Every day new challenges arise so I can never put down my guard. I have been told by at least two doctors that I should look into some sort of institutional assisted living facility, but I cannot wrap my mind around that just yet. Life is quite different than it was six years ago, before Gardasil. Six years ago Alexis was a normal 14 year old. Starting to wear make-up and get interested in boys…working hard in school and enjoying honor roll. She had her whole life ahead of her and now she spends every day in a living hell filled with pain and misery, begging to be better, begging everyone to pray for her.

Six years ago, before Gardasil, life was very different.

Alexis Wolf before Gardasil
Alexis Wolf, age 14, before her first Gardasil injection.

 

Alexis Wolf after Gardasil
Alexis Wolf, age 20, six years after Gardasil.

 

Participate in Research

Hormones MatterTM is conducting research on the side effects and adverse events associated with Gardasil and its counterpart Cervarix. If you or your daughter has had either HPV vaccine, please take this important survey. The Gardasil Cervarix HPV Vaccine Survey.

To take one of our other Real Women. Real Data.TM surveys, click here.

To sign up for our newsletter and receive weekly updates on the latest research news, click here.

 

Gardasil Injured

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I am the mother of my precious little girl Alisa (pictured). Though she is not little anymore, she will always be my princess. Alisa grew up healthy, active, and happy. She enjoyed trying new things and being around others. She loved photography, fishing, bike riding, boating, hiking, martial arts, music (especially her violin), and all types of animals. In high school she enjoyed her photography in which she won awards for. She was a tattoo assistant for a Washington State award winning tattoo artist and was learning the trade. She was on the swim team and loved swimming. Being a concerned mother I was fearful for her getting cervical cancer. We were being bombarded with commercials and ads for this vaccine for girls to be one less. When they offered the vaccine to my daughter I said sure. They never went over side effects or problems, so I figured it was a safe one. That day is when our nightmare began.

August 14, 2007, the first vaccine shot ( lot # 0384U) – Alisa went home with her injection site itchy, swollen, red, and sore. She was not feeling well, like flu. I sent her to bed and she was home sick for a couple days. The doctors office said that was normal. I did notice she was complaining about sore joints and muscles in the months to follow and she was napping more with headaches. I just blamed it on growing pains.

November 14, 2007, second vaccine shot (lot # 0927U) – Alisa was not thrilled about having the shot again. She was so scared she was going to feel crummy again. Sure enough the injection site was itchy, sore, red and this time the area swelled up a large area. She went home and went to bed. She was out of school again down with flu like symptoms for days. Slowly she came out of her slump but was so sore throughout her body. Sore muscles and joints, complained of headaches. She was exhausted all the time. It was difficult for her to muster the strength to do things. She took to her computer and was playing games online with friends.

Happy Valentines Day to you….February 14, 2008 (lot# 12APR10). This time she was flat terrified and cried all the way to the doctors begging me not to make her get the vaccine. This breaks my heart because I remember this day too vividly. I kept telling her it was the last shot and we don’t want to make the other two shots go without the final one. I kept telling her it was for the best. We left the office and she was throwing up, shaking, feverish, and the usual symptoms of sore muscles and joints, a pounding headache, exhaustion. She was down for over a week recouping from the shot.

After the 3 shots I put the series out of my mind. The only time that I remember the shots was EVERY visit to the hospitals and Dr.s offices, when they would ask if Alisa had all her vaccines. EVERY time I answered I said, “yes she has even had the Gardasil series.” Not one doctor put this together. The cause to her illnesses were put together by good friends of the family.

Many of you may wonder why I continued taking her in for the vaccine series.  I called the doctor’s office about her reactions each time, and they said it was completely normal to have those “minor” reactions: swelling, itching, light headed, and dizzy. After all it is a shot!!!! They also said at the doctor’s office, NO ONE has ever had the flu like symptoms from the vaccine, so she must have a touch of the flu. When the third dose came around they stressed to us that the other two shots of the vaccine would have been useless without the third. I trusted our family doctor of 15 years. He had never steered us wrong and always took care of us – treated us honestly and fair. I grew up with my grandfather being a doctor and most of my aunts being RN’s, I worked in the medical community. I trusted them….It never dawned on me they could be wrong.

Alisa continued on with her life but lost some of her spunkiness. She no longer had tons of energy. She slept a bunch, stopped her swim team, and spent more time in her room on the computer. She said her body hurt and didn’t feel like doing anything.

There are so many doctors appointments and hospital visits in this time frame. I have requested all her records from the hospitals, clinics, and her primary care provider (he has discharged her from his office).

October 2009, another visit to the emergency department with eye problems. She was having bloody discharge and pressure behind her right eye. Alisa was having problems with slurred speech,  headache and facial droop. They accounted it to pink eye and we begin treatment. They recommend we contact a neurologist and see the doctor.

After seeing the neurologist finally we were sent home with the idea of further testing later. Later that night the neurologist called recommending we take her back to the hospital for further testing. October 2009, off to the hospital again. By this time, Alisa was admitted into children’s hospital with the following symptoms: Bells Palsy, migraine, right sided weakness, blurry vision, tinnitus, balance problems,  numbness right side, unable to walk, problems swallowing, fatigue, joint pain, difficulty in opening mouth. They were testing for stroke and other unknown causes to this problem. She endured CAT scans, MRI’s, Lumbar punches. Over the next week she continued to get worse. Of course the psychiatric doctors were sent in to ensure she wasn’t an abuse victim. We didn’t know yet then she was abused by the pharmaceutical company. She was discharged without a cause to the problem.

This was Alisa’s senior year in high school, though the first semester she was in the hospital and a tutor came in a few times a week to drop off and pick up homework. The doctors released her to return to school but the noises, medications, and lights caused her headaches to pound and she was struggling with anxiety issues. With only one semester until graduation she dropped out of school. It was too much to handle. (She tested and passed her GED in Dec. 2011).

Over the following years Alisa has had this happen 2 more times. Right side paralysis, wheelchair, learn to walk with a walker again, and now she gets so exhausted she uses the wheelchair to save her energy.

Her side effects seem to increase in intensity and keep adding in numbers. So far she struggles with the following issues: leaky gut syndrome, pins and needles in extremities, dizziness, bleeding gums, toothaches/teeth changes, brain fog, sensitivity to chemicals, chest pains, constipation, dehydration,  enlarged liver, sound sensitivity w/anxiety, extreme pain in the tailbone area, fainting, fever and blisters, fibromyalgia, Guillain-Barre syndrome, autistic-like symptoms, hand/leg weakness, back pain, hot//cold intolerance, trouble sleeping, itching, joint pain,  knee pain, light sensitivity, blindness, depression, personality changes, anxiety/panic attacks, loss of bladder control, bladder issues, muscle aches and spasms, muscle tension, tumor, paleness, chronic fatigue syndrome, paralysis, pneumonia, severe nerve pain, shortness of breath, slurred speech, smell sensitivity, diarrhea, sore throat, stomach pain, swelling/edema, tremors hand and/or leg, random twitching of extremities, bloating, uterine spasms, hair loss, urinary tract infections (UTI), kidney issues, vision loss (temporary/permanent), vision  problems, dyslexia, hallucinations, vomiting blood, stomach ache, nausea, rashes, appetite loss, weight gain or loss ( 20-30lbs).

Alisa is unable to anything without supervision. Showering requires a shower chair. She has to be checked on constantly since her seizures come without notice. She becomes so disoriented after some of the seizures, she wanders off.

Alisa was once firm in her beliefs about anti-smoking and drug use, but has now become a medical marijuana patient. This is the only thing that takes an edge off the pain. She is never pain free but the MMJ makes it more tolerable. Unfortunately this pain relief isn’t covered by medical insurance so the $1200.00 a month pain control comes out of the pocket book.

This vaccine has dramatically changed our family’s life.  Alisa fights for her life everyday. It is even more difficult to not be able to help her or find a cure for her symptoms. It is heartbreaking to watch your child suffer in horrible pain and not be able to help. I feel guilty because my child is suffering because of a choice I made. A choice I thought was to help her and instead has disabled her. I wish someone would have told me. Please help spread the word about this vaccine. Tell everyone you know about the dangers of the vaccine. Educate before you vaccinate. This vaccine is harming thousands of girls, and now boys. The vaccine needs to be taken off the market. The numbers of children affected is rising everyday.

Participate in Research

Hormones MatterTM is conducting research on the side effects and adverse events associated with Gardasil and its counterpart Cervarix. If you or your daughter has had either HPV vaccine, please take this important survey. The Gardasil Cervarix HPV Vaccine Survey.

To take one of our other Real Women. Real Data.TM surveys, click here.

To sign up for our newsletter and receive weekly updates on the latest research news, click here.