Lori Petersen
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What was your life like before you received the COVID-19 vaccine?
Very active, driven, hardworking, fun!
I was living life with blinders on, (I miss those blinders)
Working hard two jobs and overtime when needed! I loved working and earning money, I was very proud of myself! Divorced, and I Owned my own home, provided for myself all by myself and my amazing little pug Olivia June!
Yard work was fun to me! I had the best lawn in my neighborhood!
Describe the symptoms and the timeline of the reaction.
Looking back I had symptoms that I tried to ignore and was doing pretty good at ignoring them.
I started having chest pains, fatigue, weight loss, and muscle loss. I knew something was wrong but tried to ignore it and hoped I’d get better. Still working and living life the best I could.
On 10/25/21 I woke from a dead sleep during the night due to one of my legs being completely numb/dead. I thought hmmm this is odd, is it because I’ve lost so much weight my bony knee caused my other leg to fall asleep???
On 10/30/21 I no longer could ignore the new things happening to my body inside and out! I got home from work and decided to mow my lawn to mulch the leaves before the snow started to fly. While I was mowing I started to have really terrible pains in both my wrists and I was very short of breath. Confused about why this was happening and so fatigued, I took a break to call my father and let him know I was feeling very bad. I pushed through as i always have and finished mowing. I Went to bed later that night and had no idea my life was about to be destroyed as I knew it!
10/31/21 I woke with both my arms and hands paralyzed. They were so swollen and painful! I couldn’t grasp the door knob to open my door without intense pain and a rubber band feeling in my hands. I was so overwhelmed mentally and couldn’t understand what was happening. I layed down on the couch to try to rest and my left arm went completely numb. At this point I decided I was having a heart attack and got my ex husband to drive me to the ER. The ER diagnosed me with carpal tunnel in both hands. Confused by this diagnosis, because I’d never had any signs of carpal tunnel in my life! But I accepted it and was scheduled for a carpal tunnel specialist appointment the next day.
Sure enough the Dr confirmed I had carpal tunnel and asked if I’d like to schedule surgery or steroid injections. I opted for the steroid injections because I had to get back to work!
I did some carpal tunnel research online and contacted a carpal tunnel clinic that offered a exercise program to eliminate the need for surgery. They emailed me back and suggested I get a second opinion. Hmm they wouldn’t even take my $60 bucks. I started to have numbness on the tops of my legs at this point so I called the carpal tunnel Dr back and said I’m not finding anything about carpal tunnel causing leg numbness. They then said “you don’t have carpal tunnel” and referred me to a spine specialist.
The spine specialist ordered a MRI on my neck and back. The MRI results were fine. Nothing was explaining why I had so much numbness and pain on the top and bottom of my body at the same time. I was told I could get a surgery for them to look closer inside. I was confused and grateful for my ex husband suggesting I get a nerve test done next before any exploratory surgery.
I then saw the Dr who was my savior and also the Dr who scared the shit out of me! During my nerve test he was starting to get concerned I could tell by his body language and confusion. He looked at me and said “you don’t have carpal tunnel and this is not caused by your prior neck surgery” still unable to use my hands and in terrible pain! He asked the question that forever changed my life! He asked “are you vaccinated” I literally started bawling and said yes! He said I’m calling your primary care Dr now and we will contact you later for the next steps. (I just recently saw my medical records and he thought I had CIDP 😞 still not diagnosed with this or neuropathy)
I got a call back and the three specialists and my primary Dr spoke and told me to get to the ER in Salt Lake City immediately and said you are having a reaction to the vaccine! Terrified for my life I had my mother drive me 2 1/2 hours away to get the help I needed. I even packed my bags, got my ex father in law to watch my dog.
After waiting a few hours to be seen by the one call neurologist in the ER I was then made to feel terrified even more!! He laughed at and told while he tossed my medical records on the table! “Are these even Drs?” I said yes 3 specialist in Logan and he replied “there’s no way this is from the vaccine” he said he thought I was overdosing on vitamins! Mind you at this point I only weighed 114 lbs . I started taking a daily vitamin and magnesium for bone and muscle health because I was feeling horrible for months. To this day the damage he caused me mentally and emotionally going forward in this terrifying journey haunts me! I believe he thought I was Anorexic. I couldn’t even use my hands to feed myself or open any containers or drive. My friend would stop by as much as possible to open all my containers and bring me dinner when she could. He did say I had enough neurological symptoms he’d refer me to a neurologist. My symptoms were so much worse now. I couldn’t even walk straight, muscle weakness, fatigue, unexplained pains, ⚡️ electrical zaps, pain, burning, shortness of breath, chest pains, etc… the list goes on!
I waited months before I could get in to see him, he was a amazing Dr but he couldn’t find anything wrong with me. My blood work and ANA was negative, I had a brain scan to test for MS. I was a wreck! Living alone, not able to work, terrified, and confused! He even called me on a Saturday to let me know my brain scan was perfectly normal! Okay if it’s not MS then what now???
I was then referred to a muscular neurologist who also couldn’t find anything wrong. I was then referred to a rheumatologist.
I spoke with my pharmacist about what was happening, poor guy asked how I was doing and I told him. Apparently he had a friend going through similar things. He suggested I got my ANA checked, I saw oh I had that and it came back okay. He suggested I get another one ran, his friend also had a good ANA his first time.
Finally months and months later, patiently waiting for another appointment in fear I was dying I got to the rheumatologist. She said there are many people who have contracted Covid with similar issues. I responded I haven’t had Covid. She then assured me that she believes I will get better and hang in there. She said the vaccine or an infection could be causing this as well. I asked her to run another ANA per my pharmacist suggestion. She replied it wasn’t necessary but she would. Sure enough I had a positive ANA and my WBC was off, oxygen, liver, etc… blood test not so good this time. She tested me for every auto immune disease and she assured me that I didn’t have any! Not confident in her findings or her diagnosis or suggestions I asked my primary Dr for another referral to a new rheumatologist.
The new rheumatologist reviewed my tests, and called me and said he agreed with the diagnosis of the vaccine reaction and I should get better. Well I never got better! The numbness is terrible and every night my arms would fall asleep and wake me many times. He then referred me to a new neurologist who did a punch biopsy for SFN which came back normal. We all know that by now though!
I had such a hard time believing the vaccine caused this, I couldn’t find anything anywhere about symptoms like mine online or any social media platforms. One day while searching I found a FDA speech so powerful and that’s when I was able to find react19 and many other secret places on Facebook for support! Thank you for sharing your story Matthew!
October this year will be two years I’ve not worked or lived life! I have since sold my home to live off the profit. I live in a 5th wheel now on my dad’s property. No longer date, no longer laugh, live, or smile! Every day is a struggle and I try not to be overwhelmed by this horrible situation we are all in! I live in fear for my life and mostly I live in fear if I’ll ever be worthy to myself or anyone again! What happens when I run out of money, and can’t work! I’ve lost everything I’ve worked for my whole life! I worry if I die who will love my dogs? I have Contemplated suicide many times during the beginning of this, I’m only hear because of my two dogs need me! I need them!
I no longer enjoy so many things that brought me joy! It’s really hard when your legs are always going numb, limbs are on fire, muscle pain, weakness, fatigue, muscle spasms so bad sometimes I feel like a small animal is running around inside my body! The electric shocks that randomly attack, the facial numbness, twitching, etc… I’m reminded 24/7 I’m sick and nobody is helping us! I am so grateful for the amazing strong people who have pushed and fought! I’m finally sharing my story today and I’m so proud I did it finally! I couldn’t share before due the the amount of anxiety and panic it caused even thinking about it! But today I speak! I will not be silent anymore! I’m a fighter!!
I am so proud of everyone who has shared and had the courage to do so!! I try to tell myself I’m one of the lucky ones! Even though taking a shower is a task, I still get to feel the water on my skin! So many of us are gone now and lives are lost!
In my own family I’ve lost two uncles and my grandmother from strokes in one year! They all three were vaccinated with Pfizer and are now deceased! They are not reported to VAERS!
Every day, even the painfully long days are a blessing!! I try to think this way!
To this day I don’t really have a diagnosis besides paresthesia, fibromyalgia, post vaccine syndrome. None of the doctors that I’ve seen know how to help me. When I called the long haulers clinic in Salt Lake City they won’t see me due to the fact that I’ve never caught Covid. I started bawling and said so once again the vaccine injuries aren’t getting any help thank you for taking my call and I hung up. My last neurologist appointment a few weeks ago my neurologist told me he didn’t have time to do any new research due to the new amount of new patients he has he doesn’t have time to do any research he’s waiting for protocols to be sent to him. After this appointment I sat in the parking lot crying my eyes out.
I want to give a shout out to my primary care Dr for standing by me, looking at react19 for me and telling me she wants to see my story next time she gets on here! Thank you Chantee!
Thank you miss Lindsey from Twitter, and all my vaccine injured friends for also encouraging me to share! I have one tear as I write instead of a massive amount falling from my face!! Sharing does get easier and I feel accomplished today!!
Love you guys!
I started having chest pains, fatigue, weight loss, and muscle loss. I knew something was wrong but tried to ignore it and hoped I’d get better. Still working and living life the best I could.
On 10/25/21 I woke from a dead sleep during the night due to one of my legs being completely numb/dead. I thought hmmm this is odd, is it because I’ve lost so much weight my bony knee caused my other leg to fall asleep???
On 10/30/21 I no longer could ignore the new things happening to my body inside and out! I got home from work and decided to mow my lawn to mulch the leaves before the snow started to fly. While I was mowing I started to have really terrible pains in both my wrists and I was very short of breath. Confused about why this was happening and so fatigued, I took a break to call my father and let him know I was feeling very bad. I pushed through as i always have and finished mowing. I Went to bed later that night and had no idea my life was about to be destroyed as I knew it!
10/31/21 I woke with both my arms and hands paralyzed. They were so swollen and painful! I couldn’t grasp the door knob to open my door without intense pain and a rubber band feeling in my hands. I was so overwhelmed mentally and couldn’t understand what was happening. I layed down on the couch to try to rest and my left arm went completely numb. At this point I decided I was having a heart attack and got my ex husband to drive me to the ER. The ER diagnosed me with carpal tunnel in both hands. Confused by this diagnosis, because I’d never had any signs of carpal tunnel in my life! But I accepted it and was scheduled for a carpal tunnel specialist appointment the next day.
Sure enough the Dr confirmed I had carpal tunnel and asked if I’d like to schedule surgery or steroid injections. I opted for the steroid injections because I had to get back to work!
I did some carpal tunnel research online and contacted a carpal tunnel clinic that offered a exercise program to eliminate the need for surgery. They emailed me back and suggested I get a second opinion. Hmm they wouldn’t even take my $60 bucks. I started to have numbness on the tops of my legs at this point so I called the carpal tunnel Dr back and said I’m not finding anything about carpal tunnel causing leg numbness. They then said “you don’t have carpal tunnel” and referred me to a spine specialist.
The spine specialist ordered a MRI on my neck and back. The MRI results were fine. Nothing was explaining why I had so much numbness and pain on the top and bottom of my body at the same time. I was told I could get a surgery for them to look closer inside. I was confused and grateful for my ex husband suggesting I get a nerve test done next before any exploratory surgery.
I then saw the Dr who was my savior and also the Dr who scared the shit out of me! During my nerve test he was starting to get concerned I could tell by his body language and confusion. He looked at me and said “you don’t have carpal tunnel and this is not caused by your prior neck surgery” still unable to use my hands and in terrible pain! He asked the question that forever changed my life! He asked “are you vaccinated” I literally started bawling and said yes! He said I’m calling your primary care Dr now and we will contact you later for the next steps. (I just recently saw my medical records and he thought I had CIDP 😞 still not diagnosed with this or neuropathy)
I got a call back and the three specialists and my primary Dr spoke and told me to get to the ER in Salt Lake City immediately and said you are having a reaction to the vaccine! Terrified for my life I had my mother drive me 2 1/2 hours away to get the help I needed. I even packed my bags, got my ex father in law to watch my dog.
After waiting a few hours to be seen by the one call neurologist in the ER I was then made to feel terrified even more!! He laughed at and told while he tossed my medical records on the table! “Are these even Drs?” I said yes 3 specialist in Logan and he replied “there’s no way this is from the vaccine” he said he thought I was overdosing on vitamins! Mind you at this point I only weighed 114 lbs . I started taking a daily vitamin and magnesium for bone and muscle health because I was feeling horrible for months. To this day the damage he caused me mentally and emotionally going forward in this terrifying journey haunts me! I believe he thought I was Anorexic. I couldn’t even use my hands to feed myself or open any containers or drive. My friend would stop by as much as possible to open all my containers and bring me dinner when she could. He did say I had enough neurological symptoms he’d refer me to a neurologist. My symptoms were so much worse now. I couldn’t even walk straight, muscle weakness, fatigue, unexplained pains, ⚡️ electrical zaps, pain, burning, shortness of breath, chest pains, etc… the list goes on!
I waited months before I could get in to see him, he was a amazing Dr but he couldn’t find anything wrong with me. My blood work and ANA was negative, I had a brain scan to test for MS. I was a wreck! Living alone, not able to work, terrified, and confused! He even called me on a Saturday to let me know my brain scan was perfectly normal! Okay if it’s not MS then what now???
I was then referred to a muscular neurologist who also couldn’t find anything wrong. I was then referred to a rheumatologist.
I spoke with my pharmacist about what was happening, poor guy asked how I was doing and I told him. Apparently he had a friend going through similar things. He suggested I got my ANA checked, I saw oh I had that and it came back okay. He suggested I get another one ran, his friend also had a good ANA his first time.
Finally months and months later, patiently waiting for another appointment in fear I was dying I got to the rheumatologist. She said there are many people who have contracted Covid with similar issues. I responded I haven’t had Covid. She then assured me that she believes I will get better and hang in there. She said the vaccine or an infection could be causing this as well. I asked her to run another ANA per my pharmacist suggestion. She replied it wasn’t necessary but she would. Sure enough I had a positive ANA and my WBC was off, oxygen, liver, etc… blood test not so good this time. She tested me for every auto immune disease and she assured me that I didn’t have any! Not confident in her findings or her diagnosis or suggestions I asked my primary Dr for another referral to a new rheumatologist.
The new rheumatologist reviewed my tests, and called me and said he agreed with the diagnosis of the vaccine reaction and I should get better. Well I never got better! The numbness is terrible and every night my arms would fall asleep and wake me many times. He then referred me to a new neurologist who did a punch biopsy for SFN which came back normal. We all know that by now though!
I had such a hard time believing the vaccine caused this, I couldn’t find anything anywhere about symptoms like mine online or any social media platforms. One day while searching I found a FDA speech so powerful and that’s when I was able to find react19 and many other secret places on Facebook for support! Thank you for sharing your story Matthew!
October this year will be two years I’ve not worked or lived life! I have since sold my home to live off the profit. I live in a 5th wheel now on my dad’s property. No longer date, no longer laugh, live, or smile! Every day is a struggle and I try not to be overwhelmed by this horrible situation we are all in! I live in fear for my life and mostly I live in fear if I’ll ever be worthy to myself or anyone again! What happens when I run out of money, and can’t work! I’ve lost everything I’ve worked for my whole life! I worry if I die who will love my dogs? I have Contemplated suicide many times during the beginning of this, I’m only hear because of my two dogs need me! I need them!
I no longer enjoy so many things that brought me joy! It’s really hard when your legs are always going numb, limbs are on fire, muscle pain, weakness, fatigue, muscle spasms so bad sometimes I feel like a small animal is running around inside my body! The electric shocks that randomly attack, the facial numbness, twitching, etc… I’m reminded 24/7 I’m sick and nobody is helping us! I am so grateful for the amazing strong people who have pushed and fought! I’m finally sharing my story today and I’m so proud I did it finally! I couldn’t share before due the the amount of anxiety and panic it caused even thinking about it! But today I speak! I will not be silent anymore! I’m a fighter!!
I am so proud of everyone who has shared and had the courage to do so!! I try to tell myself I’m one of the lucky ones! Even though taking a shower is a task, I still get to feel the water on my skin! So many of us are gone now and lives are lost!
In my own family I’ve lost two uncles and my grandmother from strokes in one year! They all three were vaccinated with Pfizer and are now deceased! They are not reported to VAERS!
Every day, even the painfully long days are a blessing!! I try to think this way!
To this day I don’t really have a diagnosis besides paresthesia, fibromyalgia, post vaccine syndrome. None of the doctors that I’ve seen know how to help me. When I called the long haulers clinic in Salt Lake City they won’t see me due to the fact that I’ve never caught Covid. I started bawling and said so once again the vaccine injuries aren’t getting any help thank you for taking my call and I hung up. My last neurologist appointment a few weeks ago my neurologist told me he didn’t have time to do any new research due to the new amount of new patients he has he doesn’t have time to do any research he’s waiting for protocols to be sent to him. After this appointment I sat in the parking lot crying my eyes out.
I want to give a shout out to my primary care Dr for standing by me, looking at react19 for me and telling me she wants to see my story next time she gets on here! Thank you Chantee!
Thank you miss Lindsey from Twitter, and all my vaccine injured friends for also encouraging me to share! I have one tear as I write instead of a massive amount falling from my face!! Sharing does get easier and I feel accomplished today!!
Love you guys!
Describe the solutions that helped your symptoms
I haven’t found anything yet that helps. I have tried ozone therapy, detoxing, every vitamin possible!
I am almost at the two year mark and TIME is the only thing that has helped me. Acceptance of the loss of my old self. I’m learning how to pace myself, live with pain, weakness etc…
Holding strong until we get the government to step in and recognize us and hopefully find a solution! Hope and positive thinking!
Which solutions were not helpful?
Anti-depressants. Every single doctor has tried to push an antidepressant on me. Cymbalta did help with the joint pain however it was terrible on my stomach I woke up with terrible pains in the middle of the night. I’m currently not taking any anti-depressants. I’m not depressed I’m injured, scared, unable to provide for myself! Anyone in this situation is rightfully depressed! I need help getting my ability to work and live normal and then my depression will go away. I just want to work again!!
What would you like others to know?
Stay strong! Share with anyone who will listen! Speak up and try to find joy in the little things!
