Pregnant woman puts off vaccine and nearly dies: “I was wrong. This is real”

Kassidy Hazelton, a 37-year-old from Arizona, was unsure about getting vaccinated against COVID-19, as she was pregnant at the time. Unfortunately as it turned out, the alternative was far worse: giving birth in an induced coma, while fighting for her life.

COVID-19 during pregnancy

When Kassidy was five months pregnant she was diagnosed with COVID-19. And while she initially tried to be optimistic, her situation went downhill very quickly. Kassidy soon developed body aches and a worsening fever and cough. While in quarantine, her body temperature rose to nearly 40ºC. “I was scared,” she told Fox News. “But once my temperature started to get out of control, that’s when I started to get worried.”

Emergency birth

Kassidy was air-transported to Banner University Medical Center, where she was put into an induced coma. Eventually her family had to make the decision to have the baby delivered. “They kept the baby in there as long as they could, but I wasn’t getting better and in order for me to survive or even him, they had to take him out,” Kassidy reported to Fox10.

Kassidy’s baby boy was born via c-section at 28 weeks. Weighing just under a kilo, he was taken straight to the NICU, where he will probably stay until his original due date of August 20. “Even when I woke up, I thought I was still pregnant,” she said. “It took me a few days to realise what happened.”

“We were miracles”

The little boy’s breathing is now being carefully monitored and he has has several blood transfusions. Meanwhile Kassidy was hospitalised for a total of seven weeks and is still suffering from shortness of breath.

“Everyday I get told we’re miracles and I hate to think of it like that, but we really pushed through something unimaginable,” Kassidy. “I had a tracheotomy which they cut a hole. I was knocking on death’s door and I’m still shocked I’m here today.”

“Get vaccinated!”

Kassidy regrets her decision to not get vaccinated and stresses the importance of getting the jab during pregnancy. “Don’t ignore this virus even though they’re saying it’s slowing down,” she warns. “It was slowing down in our state and I forgot it.”

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists strongly recommends vaccination during pregnancy: “Pregnant individuals who have decided to wait until after delivery to be vaccinated may be inadvertently exposing themselves to an increased risk of severe illness or death. Those who have recently delivered and were not vaccinated during pregnancy are also strongly encouraged to get vaccinated as soon as possible.”

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) recommends that pregnant women are routinely offered Pfizer at any stage of their pregnancy, writing in a statement:

“RANZCOG and ATAGI recommend that pregnant women are routinely offered Pfizer mRNA vaccine (Cominarty) at any stage of pregnancy. This is because the risk of severe outcomes from COVID-19 is significantly higher for pregnant women and their unborn baby.

Global surveillance data from large numbers of pregnant women have not identified any significant safety concerns with mRNA COVID-19 vaccines given at any stage of pregnancy. Furthermore, there is also evidence of antibody in cord blood and breastmilk, which may offer protection to infants through passive immunity.”

Sadly, Kassidy learnt the hard way, but the good news is she and her son are slowly on the mend. However she offers this warning to other mums-to-be: “Mothers need to take this seriously and there were mothers that did not make it … protect yourself and your baby because it can, and it will, kill you.”