Vaccine Injury of Emma Gill

I was very athletic and in great shape. I was one of the top runners throughout elementary and junior high and looking forward to my high school running career and hoping to run in college. I was never tired, never sick and was very active. My mental health was great with some minor anxiety when competing but it never stopped me, rather it seemed to fuel me more.

June 12, 2021 - at the age of 14 I convinced my mom to let me get the vaccine. I was starting high school XC training and the rules with the Ohio Athletic Association were if you were exposed to covid you had to sit out 2 weeks and I didn't want to miss any part of my first season.
Within an hour of the vaccine my legs swelled up from feet to about my knees. My mom called the dr and they informed us to elevate and watch me carefully and to be seen on Monday.
Monday June 14, 2021 - the pediatrician checked my heart, lungs, kidney functioning and all looked good. They did not believe my swelling in my legs were caused by the vaccine - Again this happened an hour after the vaccine so what else could it have been.
I continued on with XC training but my legs felt different. They were so heavy, like I had weights on them. After a few weeks, I explained this to my mom. We went to pediatrician again and he did blood work. My ferritin levels were significantly low and as a female runner they should be in the 100s (mine was 12). He put me on Ferrous Sulfate. I continued to run and pushed myself through every single race but it was so hard and so exhausting because of how heavy my legs were. XC season ended and I started indoor Track hoping for more success and then on to outdoor track. Everything was the same, I was referred to different specialists including a sports medicine dr. He actually said to me "this is all in your head, it's anxiety that's all" and "stop trying to push yourself to run Varsity, be happy with where you are at". I was so angry because I have been running since the age of 4 and I know what race anxiety feels like and this was not it. I kept running but my body did not cooperate with me. 10th grade XC season started off ok because I was used to running with heavy legs but when I got sick (a simple cold) it would wipe me out. Towards the end of XC season, I was finishing the race and collapsing b/c of how tired my body was. Indoor track was awful because I started having syncope episodes at this point. I would run my race indoors (1600, 800 and 400). I would make it to the end, barely, and be so dizzy sometimes fainting. This was scary for everyone. I saw a cardiologist who told me to eat well, stay hydrated and up my salt intake. I already was doing that so increasing it even more still did nothing. My heart was fine - so many tests were done to make sure. Sometime during my outdoor track season of 10th grade, my mom found a dr in Alabama dealing with Long Covid and Covid vaccine reactions, Dr. Jordan Vaughn. We made an appointment for both me an my Dad (he is also still fighting this battle). I found out through blood tests that I had microclotting. He also had an MRV done and discovered that my left iliac vein was compressed 85% - May Thurner's Syndrome. He has seen this in many young female runners. I basically would have dealt with this at some point later in my life but the vaccine did damage to my vascular system and caused the problem earlier. He referred us to Dr. Brooke Spencer in Colorado but my mom also pursued vascular in our area. The vascular dr we saw in Toledo, Ohio told me that there was no way I had this and it only looked this way b/c I am thin and was laying down during this scan. She told me there was no way anyone would touch me as I was under the age of 18 and to come back at age 18 if I was still having problems. She also referred me for genetic testing with another dr and when my mom called that office, the receptionist was extremely rude and told my mom that I could not become a patient of this specific dr b/c I already had a PCP. So, I had my appointment with Dr. Spencer via telehealth in September. Insurance approved the stent procedure and I flew to Colorado on Oct. 31, 2023, a few days after my 17th birthday. I had the procedure on Nov. 1, 2023. Once I was awake and ready to move, I got up to change and started crying b/c I could actually feel blood moving in my legs and feet again. I could immediately feel that my legs were not heavy. About 3 weeks later, I ran a 5k and felt amazing. I took it slow b/c I had not run in a while. Indoor track started and I felt great. My first meet was in January. I was running the 400. I took the last turn, got dizzy and went down immediately. Back to the specialists. Long story short, I am diagnosed with dysautonomia and neurocardiogencis syncope. they ruled out POTS. I have tried numerous things to help me but not much has made a significant enough improvement. When I get sick, it is way worse for me. I just finished my high school running career . While I am proud of myself that I pushed on, I am extremely sad because I had goals. I love running, my life is running and it was taken away because I made the choice to get vaccinated.

Listen to your body.
Sleep
Vitamins/supplements
stop seeing a dr who does not listen to you

Keep fighting. I am still fighting. I hope someday I feel like my old self.