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Who decides what you can and can’t do with your own body? From conception to death and everything in between, including circumcision, vaccination and amputation, Insight explores the laws, ethics and pressures that dictate our bodily autonomy. Watch on .
I was vaccinated during the COVID-19 pandemic and ended up with a life-threatening condition. I’ve been alarmed by what can happen when things go wrong.
I don’t see vaccination as a ‘for or against’ debate. I’m not anti-vax — and I don’t want to stop anyone from getting vaccinated. I just want to advocate on behalf of people who tried to do the right thing but now feel like they’ve been left behind.
The pandemic hit me hard, so I didn’t hesitate to get my.
In 2019, my career was at its peak. I’m a professional music photographer, and I had just finished a six-month world tour with Australian singer-songwriter Ruel, travelling the world and documenting his rise to fame.
I was also incredibly fit and healthy; basketball, gym workouts and a health-conscious lifestyle were part of my identity.
We returned home for Christmas and were planning the Asia leg of the tour when COVID-19 emerged. Within weeks, my work — and life as I knew it — was gone. My job isn’t just a job to me, so not working for nearly two years was soul-destroying.
When vaccines became available, I saw them as the only way out. As someone who always leaned left politically, I felt a responsibility to “do the right thing” and protect others.
I had concerns about how fast the vaccine had been developed, but because Australia’s rollout was delayed and I hadn’t heard of major issues, I assumed I’d be fine.
Desperate to get her photography career back, Michelle got three COVID-19 vaccines. Source: Supplied
Worsening symptoms, ‘devastating’ treatment
In early September 2021, I received my first Pfizer shot at a hub in Port Melbourne. At first, I felt okay, but by the end of the week, dizziness, lethargy and stabbing chest pain set in.
One night, it got so bad that I texted a friend, a nurse, who advised me to go to hospital.
At the emergency department, they took blood and gave me an ECG but dismissed my symptoms as anxiety. I was told I didn’t fit the “profile” of vaccine-related heart issues, which mainly affected young men.
, warning me that COVID-19 was dangerous.
Over the next few weeks, I had heart rate spikes, a pounding heart at night, adrenaline dumps, and an overwhelming feeling that something was very wrong. But three weeks later, desperate to regain my life, I got my second dose.
That decision nearly killed me.
Four days later, all my previous symptoms returned — tenfold. The chest pain was unbearable, I couldn’t sleep and I suddenly developed food intolerances.
I was living with dysautonomia, a nervous system disorder that disrupts automatic body processes like heart rate and blood pressure. It can feel like panic attacks that last for hours — over and over again.
I returned to hospital, where a kind doctor admitted they were seeing many post-vaccine cases but had no real answers. They took blood and did another ECG, then sent me home. My symptoms worsened.
My third time visit to the emergency department was the most devastating. I didn’t even see a doctor. A nurse said: “This is the third time we’ve seen you. I don’t know what you expect us to do. You should seek therapy for your anxiety”.
I left in tears. In my most vulnerable moment, I was told it was all in my head. That comment broke all my trust in the medical system.
‘I tried everything to get better’
From that point on, I felt I had to take control of my own health. I found a community of people with eerily similar symptoms on social media, but sometimes the platforms removed or hid our posts, so we had to speak in code.
Discussing real and serious health issues was often labelled “anti-vax”.
At my worst, I could barely climb stairs inside my home. I experienced horrible lethargy, I couldn’t sleep lying flat because of the chest pain, and I reacted to nearly every food. I was a shell of my former fit and healthy self; I only got through it thanks to the help and support of my husband Jarvis.
I felt like I was going to lose my entire career due to the very thing I took to get my career back on track.
Michelle credits her partner Jarvis for helping her cope with her debilitating symptoms. Source: Supplied
But then, I found a GP and naturopath who was seeing many people like me, and they helped me start a long, non-linear recovery process.
It took over eight months and countless appointments to get an official diagnosis: vaccine-induced pericarditis and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), which explained a lot of my varied and weird symptoms.
I tried everything to get better, from countless supplements and expensive treatments like hyperbaric oxygen and red light therapy, to anti-inflammatory diets, breath work and meditation.
Once I felt like I was recovering, I pushed too hard then relapsed, and had to take another three months off work in late 2022. It took two-and-a-half years to feel somewhat normal again and another year to rebuild my exercise tolerance.
‘Abandoned’
I assumed I’d qualify for compensation after hearing about.
But many claims were rejected and for those who qualified, the mountains of paperwork required could take a long time to gather and submit — often leading to rejection.
We hear time and again that ‘COVID vaccines saved lives’. But what about all the healthy lives it ruined?
It feels like our government hasn’t cared for the people who followed the rules and suffered the consequences.
I hear of people in our COVID-19-vaccine-injured community who are permanently disabled without the help of the NDIS, they can’t work or have lost their houses. Some can no longer care for their children. Some have died.
I’m one of the lucky ones; I got better. But many haven’t. One class action lawsuit is still underway for vaccine-injured Australians.
At the very least, the government must acknowledge what happened to so many of us. We did what we were told, but it feels like we were abandoned.
Would I get a COVID-19 vaccine again? Not a chance.
I’ve heard others in the community say that they would never get a vaccine of any kind, and I worry about how this will impact our herd immunity in the future.
Once you lose your health and are left to pick up the pieces of your shattered life, the risks no longer make sense.
For the latest information on the new COVID-19 vaccine approved for Australians, click .
And to understand if and when we should be getting a COVID-19 booster, click .
Readers seeking crisis support can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 and Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800 (for young people aged up to 25). More information and support with mental health is available at beyondblue.org.au and on 1300 22 4636.
Embrace Multicultural Mental Health supports people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
And for more stories head to , hosted by Kumi Taguchi. From sex and relationships to health, wealth, and grief Insightful offers deeper dives into the lives and first-person stories of former guests from the acclaimed TV show, Insight.
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