gardasil side effects Archives

Vitamin D Plays an Integral Role in Adaptive Immunity

Published on November 28, 2017

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Severe Adverse Reactions Include Vitamin D Deficiency and Autoimmunity

Hormones Matter researchers discovered that, inter alia, severe adverse reactions to any of the surveyed drugs trigger significant but varying autoimmune responses. Moreover, the research revealed an underlying consistency involving all reviewed drugs: vitamin D deficiency.

Vitamin D Helps Regulate the Adaptive Immune System

The adaptive immune system comprises the body’s intricate network of antibodies and special types of white blood cells (called sensitized lymphocytes ) to thwart new and previous invaders including viruses, bacteria, and drugs. When the adaptive immune system is not strong enough to endure external disruptions such as severe side effects of drugs, it can go awry by signaling antibodies and sensitized lymphocytes to attack healthy cells. This response is called autoimmunity—when the adaptive immune system’s cells do not recognize previous invaders and designate healthy cells as those invaders. In other words, the body’s immune cells attack its own healthy cells.

Scientific research over the past three decades solidifies the connection between vitamin D and autoimmunity. Vitamin D plays an integral role in the regulation of the adaptive immune system. Adequate vitamin D in our bodies can protect us from autoimmunity because adaptive immune cells contain vitamin D receptors (VDRs). These receptors are attached to the surface of the adaptive immune system’s antibodies and sensitized lymphocytes. The VDRs act as “gate keepers” by signaling what external substances, e.g., components of medications, can enter a cell. The VDRs must be replete with vitamin D to effectively regulate adaptive immunity. When the VDRs receive adequate amounts of vitamin D, they enable the adaptive immune system to function properly by attacking new and previous invaders.

When the VDRs attached to the adaptive immune system’s cells do not contain sufficient vitamin D to attack invaders, autoimmunity may kick in, causing the death of healthy immune cells. Thus, low vitamin D levels can lead to autoimmune diseases including thyroid disorders such as Hashimoto’s and demyelinating diseases including multiple sclerosis (MS).

Vitamin D and Hashimoto’s Autoimmune Thyroid Disease

The Real Women, Real Data research also uncovered another consistency among severe adverse reactions to the reviewed drugs: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease caused by abnormal cells constantly assaulting the thyroid gland
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Vitamin D receptors are present in the thyroid as well as the pituitary, the pea-shaped gland that controls the thyroid. Not surprisingly, low levels of serum vitamin D have been linked to Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, according to recent Turkish medical research:

Published in a 2013 issue of the journal Endocrine Practice, a study conducted at a training and research hospital in Ankara demonstrated that serum vitamin D levels of female chronic Hashimoto’s patients were significantly lower than healthy subjects. Furthermore, the researchers discovered a direct correlation between serum vitamin D levels and thyroid volume as well as an inverse correlation to the antibodies involved in the thyroid.

Researchers at Medeniyet University’s Goztepe Education and Research Hospital in Istanbul learned that 92 per cent of their 161 Hashimoto’s thyroiditis cases had serum vitamin D levels lower than 30 ng/mL (12 nmol/L), a value characterized as “insufficient.” Published in a 2011 issue of the journal Thyroid, the study reports an association between vitamin D insufficiency and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.

Vitamin D and Demyelinating Disorders

Another disturbing outcome of the Real Woman, Real Data research is the reporting of neurological and neuromuscular symptoms, many which of are consistent with demyelinating disorders such as MS, an autoimmune disease. The development of MS occurs when a poorly functioning, adaptive immune system gradually attacks the protective covering of the nerve cells (called the myelin sheath) of the brain and spinal cord. This potentially debilitating process is called demyelination.

Scientific—primarily epidemiological—research indicates an association between vitamin D levels and the risk of developing a demyelinating disorder such as MS. VDRs exist on nerve cells and the myelin sheath. When the VDRs receive adequate amounts of vitamin D, they help protect the integrity of the myelin sheath. However, when the VDRs do not contain sufficient vitamin D, autoimmunity may occur, resulting in the death of healthy nerve cells. Numerous clinical trials are underway to assess the connection between vitamin D status and the likelihood of developing demyelinating disorders.

Low Vitamin D: The Chicken or the Egg?

The connection between low vitamin D status and the development of autoimmune disease is genuine. However, medical research has not yet determined if vitamin D deficiency plays a role in the development of autoimmune disease, if low vitamin D levels are a consequence of the disease itself, or if vitamin D deficiency acts as both a cause and effect. The authors of the aforementioned 2013 Hashimoto’s study concluded,

“Finally, our results suggested that there may be a causal relation between vitamin D deficiency and development of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. On the other hand, there might be a possible relation between severity of vitamin D deficiency and progression of thyroid damage. However, further studies are needed especially about the effects of vitamin D supplementation on prevention and/or progression of autoimmune thyroid disease.”

Proactive Protection against Severe Adverse Reactions

We could wait years (or decades) to garner the results of further scientific studies and clinical trials to define the exact relationship between vitamin status and severe adverse reactions to vaccines and medications that culminate in autoimmune disorders. Or we could be proactive by taking daily vitamin supplements and enjoying moderate sunlight exposure to increase our vitamin D levels.

It is imperative to take enough vitamin D3 so this essential nutrient will be stored in your cells to help regulate your immune system. The greater your serum vitamin D level (easily obtained from a simple blood test called 25(OH) D, the more likely you will benefit from a stronger immune system that protects your body’s cells from attacking one another.

No one wants to endure severe adverse reactions to drugs such as Gardasil and Lupron, let alone an autoimmune disease. Attaining and maintaining adequate supplementation provides a safe, easy, and inexpensive approach to improved preventive health. By empowering yourself with adequate vitamin D, you may reap the benefits of avoiding disease and enjoying better quality of life.

This article was published previously on Hormone Matter in September 2013.

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Post Gardasil Severe Cyclic Vomiting, Migraines, and a Long List of Other Symptoms

by Jean Mathews

Published on July 18, 2017

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This is a photo of Stephanie Matthews pre-Gardasil. Below is a photo of her in December 2016, while in the hospital. She is slowly starting to let me calendar her health with photos and writing.

Gardasil, the journey no one should take…

If this story helps just one more girl, this journey will not be in vain.

I will not be able to touch the tip of the iceberg with this story. So much more has happened over these past 4-5 years. It has been a whirlwind and like a whirlwind, and unwelcome event. If you take one thing away from Steph’s story it should be clear as a bell. DO NOT GET THE GARDASIL VACCINE FOR YOURSELF OR YOUR CHILDREN.

Stephanie was 23 years old at the time of her 1^st Gardasil vaccine. As most young adults, Stephanie was working, had her own health insurance and took responsibility for her health and medical decisions. Stephanie had been a Type I diabetic since age 10 and knows how important it is to take care of herself. At her regular checkup the doctor said that she needed to get this “NEW” vaccine for the HPV virus. So the journey began.

Steph received her first vaccine in June 2008. The second in October 2008. The night of her second vaccine Stephanie was hospitalized in ICU for an acute respiratory problem and sky rocketing blood sugars.

The 3^rd vaccine was given in December 2008. Early in 2009, Stephanie took a trip to Mexico. On her way back she had uncontrollable vomiting, headaches, body aches and was again hospitalized.

Thinking that she may have picked something up while on her travels to Mexico, we pressed the hospital and doctors to check for parasites and pathogens. All tests came back negative.

She began being hospitalized over and over again with uncontrolled vomiting, headaches and body aches, Test after tests, revealed nothing. Then finally a diagnosis of gastroparesis (delayed gastric emptying), from her diabetes. Her body was also full of yeast. The gastric emptying test came back inconclusive and one of them came back slow.

Here is the clincher, we did not give any thought to the vaccine, because we did not know she had the vaccine. It was not until we started realizing that her symptoms were not conclusive to gastroparesis, that I pressed Stephanie asking what she may have done differently or been exposed to. This is when she said “well, I had a vaccine”. Keep in mind she was an adult and trusting the doctors, she did not think this was relevant. They would not give her something to hurt her, she thought.

Connecting the Dots: It was Gardasil

It would be close to two years before the awakening as to Steph’s “mystery illness would be realized. It was while on my Facebook page a large flashing ad on the left of my screen shouting one more girl, got my attention. I clicked on it and found that several girls had the same symptoms. I had so many questions.

How was this vaccine tested?

What did the package insert say?

Did any other of these girls have already compromised immune systems like Steph with her type I diabetes?

Was it tested on this group of girls?

Why do some get sick but not all and why so many? It is like playing Russian roulette.

Why had other countries already taken the vaccine off the market?

This was just the beginning of the long long journey into the Gardisil nightmare.

Vomiting, Edema, Itching, Hair Loss, Extreme Moods, Jaw Growth, Bone Aches, and More

Since October 2008, Stephanie has been hospitalized over 80 times. She was in for three weeks in Southern California. This time on a purely liquid diet, hooked up to IVs, gaining weight and still vomiting. She had headaches, disrupted menstrual cycle, large weight gain, itching, hair loss body aches depression, extreme mood changes.

She has had EVERY test over and over again.

Not one doctor that we encountered had yet to look or even consider the vaccine; they have blamed everything from her diabetes, to her being psychologically sick.

The doctors have gone so far as to say that they think we are crazy. Her last doctor in Southern California finally looked at the other girls’ stories and the website SaneVax. He threw his hands up and said, “If this were my mother, daughter, sister or aunt, I would go and get a second opinion.” Keep in mind by this time, Steph has had every blood test, scope, scan and test that was available, all pretty much inconclusive or if one came back positive once, it was not positive again.

They pumped her full of anti-nausea meds, antibiotics, fluids, painkillers, anti-fungal over and over again. Each and every hospital visit we would have to go over the same thing, and each and every time we would get the same treatment. We were always told by the hospitals,

“We don’t fix people here. We just get them well enough to follow up with their primary doctor.”

I could not get them to understand that she is hospitalized so much that by the time she gets out and gets an appointment to her primary doctor, she is sick again and admitted to the hospital. We have had 2^nd 3^rd and 4^th opinions.

These symptoms are brutal. The vomiting is not something that stops on its own, and is accompanied by brutal stomachaches as well. Now you tell me, how does a person who is vomiting more days out of their life, than not, gain weight?

Other symptoms: It is almost like she has gone into menopause, with the hair loss, mood swings, and night sweats, hot flashes. This vaccine disrupts the entire neurological and endocrine system. In addition to the uncontrollable vomiting, her symptoms include: fatigue, fainting, dizziness, severe food allergies, missed menstrual periods, severe cramps, and bartonella rash. Weight gain, uncontrollable blood sugars, light sensitivity and heat sensitivity.

Nine Years Post-Gardasil: Still Sick, Mounting Hospital Bills and No Answers

By October 2010, Stephanie’s Cobra insurance ran out. She was now uninsured, unable to work, she could barely get out of bed, and her hospital bills had mounted to over $2 million dollars. I decided to move her to Northern California, so she would be closer and maybe get fresh start with new doctors. She had already been hospitalized numerous times in Southern California at five different hospitals.

The move north proved to us that the medical field is not willing to accept or take responsibility to go up against the “big Pharma” companies.

Steph spent most of April 2013 in the hospital. We went so far as to have her gallbladder removed, just hoping this would stop her uncontrollable vomiting, wrong again. One doctor actually told us

“So what if it is the vaccine, what are we going to do about it?”

Today, Steph is 31 she is on disability, and on Medicare, but still not one doctor is willing to look further into the fact that the vaccine has caused her symptoms. Her visits to the hospital are coming farther apart.

It seems that there is a series of things that happen before she gets sick. She becomes extremely tired. She will “swell up” get extremely bad migraines and body aches. Then the vomiting will start. She will vomit with no food in her system and it will be hundreds of times and last for days. This seems to be occur every three months.

Gardasil Victims

Stephanie is not alone, there have been 394 deaths, and 51,522 adverse reactions reported to VAERS. This is only in the United States. Keep in mind; these are only reported reactions, how many other families have sick adult daughters that have not put two and two together? Many other countries are battling the same Gardasil Injuries, Ireland, Mexico, Australia, UK and Japan just to name a few.

Now they are going to be giving it to 12 year-olds in schools and without parental consent if that child wants it. And why in the world would they want 12 year olds to get this vaccine, without having to tell their parents? A 12 year old that became sick from this vaccine without parental knowledge would never be able to connect the two event! And so, the horrible journey in to Gardisil prison would begin.

I just hope that all of our girl’s stories help to get the word out that this vaccine, is a killer! It takes away lives. It makes the medical field and pharmaceutical companies millions, and now it is being said that many of these girls will become sterile. This is now being stated by the American College of Pediatricians. ACPEDS.org

My opinion is that these doctors and hospitals are scared to death to side with an extremely sick young girl, for fear of retaliation against the drug companies and mainly in this case MERCK. Please know that all 3 of my children had their childhood vaccines. I was not anti-vaccine, until this. The Gardasil vaccine “fast tracked” to the mainstream medical and do not have sufficient testing to deem them safe for anyone.

Please do not even consider this vaccine, it has damaged and killed more girls throughout the U. S. and other countries than the disease it was meant to protect against!

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Recovering from the Gardasil Vaccine: A Long and Complicated Process

by Charlotte Nielsen

Published on September 16, 2015

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My daughter Sara was almost 13 when she became ill after two inoculations of the Gardasil HPV vaccine. Read her story: The Gardasil Experience in Denmark. Much has happened since then in Denmark as well globally concerning the HPV vaccine issue. Sara turned 15 when over two years of severe illness had passed. She has slowly achieved some recovery from more than 30 symptoms including a walking disability and severe brain fog.

This is an update on the continuing struggle toward Sara’s recovery. Like many families, we have had to navigate in areas of medicine, where there were no experts to guide us. Thanks to networking, it has been possible to find highly skilled doctors, using a variety of methods from both orthodox and complementary medicine, to help treat Sara.

As families of Gardasil-injured girls we have had fights with our respective governments to recognize the illnesses that were born from this vaccine. In Denmark and Japan, the battles we fought have begun to bear some success. Researchers are uncovering new connections, and medical institutions are beginning to recognize the post Gardasil health issues. We are making progress, but there is still much to do.

Gaining Recognition for Gardasil Injuries: Denmark and Japan

For thousands of patients and families, in over 50 countries, recovering from post Gardasil illnesses has been an ongoing struggle. It has been difficult for the patients and their families to get the medical care needed. There is still very little research on post-Gardasil injuries. There are no tests available to diagnose the illnesses and injuries that develop post vaccine, and there are no recognized treatments for these patients within established health care systems. In fact, for the most part, these symptoms are all-but-ignored by most practitioners.

However, the activism and networking of many families has led to some positive outcomes in recognition. For example, a Japanese TV company made contact and visited our home in December 2014. Soon after a documentary about the Danish HPV situation aired in Japan 12th January 2015. Sara was the main case. Danish doctors met with the Japanese Prof. Kusuki Nishioka, MD, PhD, director of Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo Medical University, who specializes in rheumatic diseases and fibromyalgia. Dr. Nishioka has been a leading voice in Japan against the HPV vaccine. The meeting (featured at 9:50) concluded with a recognition of clear similarities between the symptoms of Japanese and Danish patients.

In Denmark, over the last two years, there has been a growing public wake up with stories in the newspapers, on TV and social media. The interest among politicians, authorities and doctors increased. This has probably been a contributing factor in the growing number of patients reporting side effects. According to the latest update (September 2015) from a database of the Danish Health and Medicines Authority, of the over 500,000 young girls and women who received the vaccine, there have been:

1806 reports of adverse reactions (each person could have up to over 30 symptoms)
374 reports (out of 1386) per News on Side effects per have been classified ‘severe’ from 2006 and up through April 2015.

I should note that the Danish Board of Health failed to report an additional 81 adverse reactions that occurred prior to the vaccine’s introduction into children’s vaccine program in 2009; 11 of these 81 cases were classified serious. The latest update of the database can be viewed here: Danish reports of Gardasil adverse reactions.

In Denmark, the reporting of adverse reactions has increased by about 100 new cases every month since April. Still more families realize how their daughter’s symptoms look similar to obvious patterns presented. A thread is running through all these cases stories of severe side effects, as a Danish leading hospital doctor and researcher stated on TV (1:30).

Gardasil, POTS and CRP: New Research on the HPV-Vaccine Induced Neurological Damage

A research team of doctors and medical staff at Coordinating research Centre/Syncope Unit, Frederiksberg Hospital, published three studies of patient groups with severe neurological symptoms including pain following shortly after HPV-vaccination.

Suspected side effects to the quadrivalent human papilloma vaccine.
Another study describes 21 cases with the diagnose POTS: Orthostatic intolerance and postural tachycardia syndrome as suspected adverse effects of vaccination against human papilloma virus.
The Danish findings have made EMA (European Medicines Agency) investigate into the HPV-vaccine, security and side effects by focusing on POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) and CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome). The EMA report is expected to be finished by May 2016.
Danish and Japanese health authorities are keeping contact as well. Danish Health and Medicines Authorities with the help of a pediatrician are reviewing all adverse drug reports in Denmark focusing patterns of symptoms rather than diagnoses.
A Danish TV documentary in March this year presented three case stories. Over fifty young girls participated anonymously in the report simply by silent presence, all making a great impact. The report presented interviews by Danish and British physicians. A Danish professor of molecular medicine comments about the remarkable test results of a young patient after intravenous infusions of phosphoplipids, performed in England (21:20).

Increased Media Coverage, Increased Side Effect Recognition

After the Danish TV report aired, a veritable telephone storm began the very next morning with post Gardasil patients wanting referrals to Frederiksberg Hospital. Until then, the Syncope Unit had examined about 80-90 patients with HPV-vaccine side effects. After the TV documentary, the number of patients grew to 350, increased to 525 referrals by August, and now there is a huge waiting list.

At the same time, Health Care Council of Danish Regions announced the establishment of five centers (one for each Region in Denmark), opening June 1, of this year. These centers were established to treat patients with suspected side effects from the HPV-vaccine. Frederiksberg Hospital Syncope Unit, situated in Copenhagen, as a research Center for natural reasons remained center of the Capital Region. Over 1100 patients are referred to the five Regions by now.

The problem is, in spite of waiting lists, the four other centers have no experience and no present research to help clarify these symptoms in patients without a diagnosis. The knowledge and qualifications of staff behind these doors remain lacking because of the paucity of research on Gardasil side effects. Unfortunately, still some patients are met by an attitude of arrogance. Most physicians have no idea what to look for in these HPV injuries.

At the Frederiksberg Syncope Unit the research team doctors have some ideas, though. While continuing to work with new patients, the unit’s physicians are diagnosing many cases of POTS (by tilt bearing test). By September this year, 62 reported cases have been diagnosed POTS after the Gardasil, HPV vaccination in Denmark. Symptoms are mainly neurological and sometimes resemble or include those of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). Several of the patients after receiving the Gardasil HPV vaccine examined at Frederiksberg Hospital could be diagnosed ME, according to the research team´s third study this year: Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis a Relevant Diagnosis in Patients with Suspected Side Effects to Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine?

POTS, ME and Mitochondria

POTS is a well known comorbidity to ME according to the research. It is also connected to mitochondrial dysfunction. An emerging theory is that Gardasil damages nerve cells and induces mitochondrial degeneration. This then leads to conditions of energy loss with neurological symptoms. An increasing number of international studies on Gardasil and Cervarix have been published over the last few years. Case studies such as CNS demyelination following HPV vaccination have been described. Research teams and doctors in Denmark, Israel and Japan etc. are looking into correlation by studying autoimmunity and possible markers. When analyzing symptoms a pattern emerges between this vaccine and many severe injuries. Strong connections have been presented in Death after Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccination: Causal or Coincidental?

More recently, six cases of POTS were described and published. Another case study presents a 14 year old girl with POTS and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome after the Gardasil vaccine. Last year a Japanese study included 40 cases, the main part with symptoms identical to CRPS, and four cases were even diagnosed POTS. Prof. Yehuda Shoenfeld and his team recently published a study on Safety of Human Papilloma Virus-Blockers and the Risk of Triggering Autoimmune Diseases. The authors conclude, after a review of U.S. VAERS reports, though the vaccine is stated as safe, there are many mechanisms by which autoimmunity is triggered by Gardasil vaccine adjuvants and viral proteins. They suggest that recombinant proteins from Gardasil are leading to an increased association with autoimmunity.

My daughter Sara experience the symptoms concordant with the major criteria of ASIA syndrome proposed by Prof. Shoenfeld. Her case was sent to the international ASIA registry last year. By now other Danish patient cases are being registered.

The Japanese doctor Kusuki Nishioka presented his work at an international congress of bio-rheumatology in Moscow July 2014. Nishioka’s work points to another post Gardasil Syndrome called HANS or Human Papillomavirus Associated Neuroimmunopathic Syndrome.

Sara’s Recovery from Gardasil Injury

Our daughter’s health history is an example of a likely temporal correlation between the Gardasil vaccine and a host of complicated post vaccine symptoms. Sara fainted two days after her second vaccination with Gardasil, March 2013. Right after this, all her neurological symptoms appeared, one after another. Children’s hospital performed several analyses including CT and MRI scans. The only blood test that came out positive was a very low vitamin D test (at 25). The only suggestion for treatment by children’s ward, was a powder medication for non-existing constipation that was postulated due to her abdominal pains. This medication was given despite the fact that her primary symptoms were neurological like tingling, burning and pain of legs and arms, dizziness, fatigue and a constant headache. A neurological examination seemed out of question and was rejected.

We realized that there was no treatment in Denmark for Sara and went to the Swiss clinic Paracelsus, Lustmühle. Back in Denmark, Sara was diagnosed POTS at Frederiksberg Hospital shortly after; although a doctor of social medicine at children’s hospital had claimed Sara could not suffer from any physical diseases and implied it was only some kind of bio-psycho-social disorder.

With the help of our Swiss doctor, Sara had several tests performed by foreign laboratories (German, Swiss, Belgium and British). Clear markers were found proving a dysfunction of her mitochondria, the “powerhouses” of the cells. Among signs of severe oxidative stress were low levels of coenzyme Q10, a key element in the energy production of the cells.

Severe toxic reaction to the vaccination with Gardasil, initiating fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) with acquired mitochondriopathy, was the Swiss diagnosis. Sara’s muscle pains were correlating classic trigger points of FMS.
Similar symptoms and diagnoses have been proposed in two patients after post HPV vaccine, by Dr. Manuel Martínez-Lavín.

Sara’s treatment was planned from test results, by her Swiss doctor’s experience in pediatrics and diseases of energy loss like Fibromyalgia Syndrome. The doctors there had great competence and knowledge from other vaccine injuries. On several occasions, the doctor hit the nail on the head with tests which would guide treatment details. Sara slowly began to improve.

Abdominal pains recovered within the first few months. At our local children’s ward doctors did not manage to perform a test of Celiac disease, whilst the Swiss clinic found pathological bacteria like Klebsiella Pneumo and other problems of the gut, which needed treatment.

After the Gardasil vaccine, her skin and muscles were sensitive to any touch, she could hardly use a wash cloth for her face. Today a careful massage and deeper pressure of muscles can even be tolerated.

More common metabolic tests were later managed within the Danish system (by our GP), and several linked hormones were affected. Sara had TSH and T4/T3 measured at the very low/ under border. According to the Swiss doctor there is a clear cut connection. He theorizes, recombinant proteins from Gardasil lead to damage of the brain nerve cells, especially affecting the hypothalamus and hypophysis, running the production of hormones in the thyroid gland, the adrenals and the ovaries. Via the TSH-control the thyroid gland normally should produce sufficient levels of T4/T3. But TSH is low as the releasing hormone (TRH) from the damaged hypothalamus is low. TRH has a direct effect on the mitochondria, as a permanent “crosstalk” is going on.

Hormones Matter has published a number of articles on post-medication and vaccine thyroid injury.

Last winter Sara had a solution of homeopathic injections of her skin (sub cutane, D5 Hypophysis and Hypothalamus) four times a week, performed at home by her very brave dad, monitored by the Swiss doctor. New Danish test results are showing TSH and T4 increased to normal levels.

Her HPV related symptoms were worsened with menstrual related pains, increasing to unbearable levels. Though still quite painful today, they are closer to normal for her age.

Her temperature regulation problems have almost gone. Before she would freeze and need a woolen blanket when everybody else felt warm in front of the wood-burning stove, or she would feel too hot in chilly surroundings. Night sweats are history.

Along with the mentioned treatment Sara has been taking a huge number of additional natural supplements and medication. Her diet has been strictly controlled too, with only healthy, nutritional foods allowed per our wonderful Swiss nutritionist at the Paracelsus Clinic.

More than once, Glutathione was measured by test to be at the very low border, and it has been complicated so far to raise this to normal levels.

No doubt phospholipids (NT Factor ATP lipids powder) made a difference of mitochondrial function since the ATP, the energy for every cell, has increased markedly. Nevertheless, lab tests have proven there is still an inability to produce sufficient amounts of ATP, which explains her rapid fatigue and problems in concentrating over longer periods of time. We expect future tests to show even better results based on the very good improvements we have seen so far.

Correcting the Post Gardasil Thiamine Deficiency

Probably the most effective supplement lately has been Sara’s treatment for thiamine deficiency, advised by Dr. Lonsdale. Thiamine is Vitamin B1. This article, in particular, was very helpful: Thiamine and magnesium deficiencies: keys to disease.

We found a German laboratory, Ganz Immun Diagnostics, performing the test for Transketolase in red cells, and the TPP-effect which was 27,5% (normal range < 20%.). To Dr. Lonsdale, there was no doubt, Sara would need Allithiamine (TTFD, a bioavailable form of fat soluble Vitamin B1), plus magnesium potassium aspartate.

Sara went through a tough time over some weeks by a so called “vitamin therapy paradox“. Side effects occurred, she had to go down to half the dose to continue and simply cope with some unpleasant symptoms for a few weeks before going back on full dose. Sara came out better than she had been for a long time, with more energy, and slowly a clearer mind. So far, most of her previous main pains still remain to some degree, but the paradox-related side effects have gone.

Best of all her brain fog began to lift with the thiamine treatment. Learning has even become possible along with concentration and memory improving. She manages a limited number of lessons at home, and she remembers much better than earlier. Her new level of energy allows her slowly to participate in the activities she had not been able to do in the years since the vaccine injury. Still seeing friends takes her energy, and social life is limited. If she overdoes her activity, the bill arrives sometimes days later by exhaustion and deterioration.

Another important treatment has been to increase the level of SAM. S-Adenosyl Methionine (also SAMe) is an important compound of the body and plays a role in many important processes of the immune system including maintains cell membranes. Last summer Sara could only walk up to 300 meters in a very slow speed at pains, with burning feet and exhaustion. We used a wheel chair once to get her to an open air musical area. This really felt like a step in the wrong direction.

She was diagnosed toxic neuropathy (after Gardasil) by a Danish retired doctor. The Swiss doctor made sure we had SAM measured by a German laboratory. Within the first four weeks of treatment by Methyl Guard (Thorne, US, Veggie caps), Sara could walk much better. We even enjoyed her amazing first careful dancing steps for the first time within months.

Sara’s Health Today

Today Sara can walk distances at good days about 1.5 kilometers at a normal speed with small pauses; and she can bike even longer. Twitching legs and cramps have almost disappeared and very rarely occur after too much exertion.

Sara started horse riding therapy, which she simply loves. After some weeks her muscle power improved clearly, and she can now carry a horse saddle. Months ago she could hardly lift a glass of water. She is more independent in activities of daily living, though she still needs help to some degree. She can do things like baking pan cakes again.

While still improving, our hope is to find a way for Sara to recover from resisting pains and to achieve more energy over time. Remaining are still some sensory disturbances (tingling and the more rare burning sensations) and sensitivity to light. Her constant headache lasting over two years, muscle pains of legs/and partly of arms are still present, though once in a while less heavy and variations appear during day time. Still remains severe fatigue and often a delayed exhaustion, which are all typical ME-symptoms. Myalgic Encephalomyelitis is another diagnosis Sara probably will have to cope with.

Sara lost two important years of teenage life. She’ll have lots to catch up with in the future. She faces a great challenge with her education, as two school years have been lost so far. She will hopefully go back to some kind of school life in the future. Sara enjoys music and her classical song lessons. She has kept her hopes and dreams alive, and she can even benefit from her very hard experiences by Gardasil injury. The damage it did to her made her mature and wise beyond her age.

The Toll Gardasil Recovery Takes on the Family

As a family this has been a challenge; sometimes feeling like a never ending nightmare. We realized early, there was no established treatment for this condition, and perhaps luckily, we went abroad in time.

As a mom, I have to stay on top of everything and keep up my energy for activism, networking, and first of all for the care taking. Organizing blood samples is another job, plus catching up on results and writing regular status reports of symptoms and improvement. Ordering supplements is a task for her dad. Sara’s treatment has been counting over 25 different capsules, tablets, plus liquid remedies and drops, powders and injections.

No Danish physician has been able to take charge of Sara’s treatment. The Swiss doctor has been the main physician during the last two years. Our GP kindly assists in blood taking for German labs etc., something not many GPs would do.

The Swiss treatment was welcomed by three or four physicians here, who all have been supportive in Sara’s care. Foreign practitioners shared with us their knowledge and experience as well. For sure, the more consensus, the safer we feel.

Added to treatment, there are exhausting meetings with officials in accordance of planning Sara’s teaching and making sure her lessons are always adjusted to her present resources. We have clear laws on teaching ill pupils at home by local school.

As these post vaccine injury conditions are still not very well known, authorities do not always understand and respect patient’s decreased resources and special needs. Many young girls are trapped by now in the grey area, not able to cope with education or full time work, neither do we have social legislation to cover them appropriately.

There are no guarantees of a full recovery, though we still have our hopes and spirits. The pleasure and great relief of seeing Sara progress will never replace the tremendous pain and losses she has suffered, neither the price we payed as a family; not to mention financial costs.

Regarding connection the remaining dots of vaccine damages, rebuilding mitochondrial function is of great importance. By taking supplements of certain vitamins, minerals, phospholipids, fatty acids (omega-3 and -6 oils), antioxidants and amino acids, it is possible to facilitate a regeneration and maintenance of mitochondrial structure and cell metabolism. These supplements ease the symptoms for Sara and other post HPV-vaccine injured patients.

Final Thoughts

Well skilled naturopaths and physicians from Japan, across Europe and the U.S. are putting great effort in trying different protocols with varied positive effects. An example of co-work is Japanese, Danish and British protocols, as described in Orthomolecular treatment by Atsuo Yanagisawa. There is no quick cure fitting everybody. It is an individual and very long process to find the appropriate treatment. There exists great consensus on certain issues. Namely, that we need more testing and research. The more we know about post Gardasil damage at the molecular level, the better a treatment could be adjusted precisely for each patient. Along with more research and improved testing, we need to understand the relationship between this vaccine and the range of side-effects that develop. This will uncover causal connections to the vaccine injuries. Most importantly, we need to share experiences and research. This will help those who need to recover, and hopefully, prevent future victims.

Pap Smears Saved my Life: Cervical Cancer After Gardasil

by Laurel

Published on April 24, 2014

6898 views

I went to the doctor in early January 2008 and during the consultation was asked if I’d had my Gardasil shot. There was no discussion about possible side effects and I was urged to have it while it was still free. So I had the first shot then, just before my 26^th birthday. I had the second shot at the end of February.

I was healthy, fit and enjoying life. I was working in retail and there was talk of promotion and management training. My long term plans included a career change so I was training at the gym regularly to get my fitness level up. I passed a thorough preliminary medical examination in early May.

A Delayed Reaction to Gardasil?

In mid-May, I broke out in a rash. Originally I thought it might have been bed bugs or a reaction to laundry powder but it persisted and the doctor thought it was an allergy of some sort. I was put on antihistamines but the rash continued. One day my eyelid was swollen. Another day my lip swelled up. It seemed random and puzzling.

In June, I had my third Gardasil shot and then things really started to rev up with the symptoms escalating in frequency and severity.

It was then, that I started keeping a health diary to track what I was eating, what medication I was on, and what symptoms I was experiencing. After a few weeks I realised that it was not related to what I was eating, so just recorded medication and symptoms being experienced.

By July, the rash was all over my torso, legs, and arms and my face. It would sometimes come up in great welts. One night my thighs were blood red and so itchy I thought I’d go mad. One day I woke up and my entire face was so swollen, I looked like I’d been beaten up and I could barely recognise myself. My hands and feet would swell up and be so painful I could barely walk. My wrists and ankles ached and I had trouble sleeping because every time I moved I was in pain. I had strange bald patches on my tongue.

Post Gardasil Skin & Inflammatory Reactions – Patient ZVK from Hormones Matter

A Post Gardasil Inflammatory Condition

I had so many blood tests I felt like a pin cushion. In early July the doctor rang back to say my recent blood tests showed elevated CRP levels (an inflammatory indicator). I went back for weekly blood test, and the CRP levels continued to be elevated and rising higher each week. Up until then I had been seeing different doctors at different clinics so my mum suggested I see her doctor, Dr R, so there was some overview perspective.

By this stage I had taken so much time off work that I ran out of sick leave and went onto sickness benefits.

Dr R tried to get me an appointment with an Allergist but the waiting time was 10-12 weeks, and I was put on the cancellation list. In the mean time I went gluten-free and cut down on processed foods. Nothing worked.

Idiopathic Urticaria and Angioedema

On the 24^th July my tongue started to swell. My mum drove me to the Emergency Department of The Alfred Hospital. I thought it will be just like on ‘House’ or ‘All Saints’ and the doctors will solve the riddle, provide a diagnosis and cure me. But no such luck. I was told I had “idiopathic urticaria / angioedema”. They couldn’t say what caused it and all they could do was try to control the symptoms. After spending hours there I was eventually sent home with a script for high dosage antihistamines – I was on 2 x 24 hr strength tablets twice a day. One thing I learnt was that I was meant to be taking 2 different types of antihistamine, R1 and R2, for the urticaria.

The doctors assured me this would control my symptoms. It didn’t.

Connective Tissue Involvement

I managed to get an appointment at short notice – there had been a cancellation- to see Dr S, a Specialist Physician (specialising in diagnosis), on 25^th July. He took thorough notes of my history and symptoms. He said clinically it looked like connective tissue involvement suggestive of rheumatoid arthritis or a lupus-type condition. He ordered more blood tests, including a specific one for lupus. He also said not to worry too much as clinicians had recently being seeing patients presenting with what they were calling ‘pseudo lupus syndrome’. Could these pseudo lupus syndromes be related to the Gardasil vaccine or other medication reactions? I wonder.

Swollen Tongue

On 14^th August, exactly three weeks after my previous visit, I was back at the Alfred Hospital Emergency Department. Three weeks of the treatment had not controlled the symptoms, but had left me physically weaker – I was nauseous, tired from lack of sleep and in pain. I went to the Emergency Department at 10.15 pm as the back of my tongue was swollen and there was a strange feeling in my throat. I felt like I had a large bubble in my throat and it was difficult to swallow. The Alfred Hospital staff were spectacularly unhelpful – I was told to report back to the desk if unable to breathe. Over the next hours the swelling seemed to stabilise in that it wasn’t getting worse. I left The Alfred at 12.30am having not been seen and I got home at 2.30am. At about 6.30am the swelling suddenly started to increase and I had difficulty in swallowing. My mum came and collected me and we went straight to see Dr R. She said in over 30 years of practice she had never seen or heard of anything like it. I was put back onto cortisone.

On 20^th August I had my revisit with Dr S. The blood test for Lupus was negative, so I was one of the ‘pseudo lupus syndrome’ patients. He recommended I see a Rheumatologist rather than an Allergist or Dermatologist. He said that, in Melbourne, Immunologists tended to be research rather than clinical, and that Rheumatologists were the autoimmune specialists. So, onto another waiting list to see a yet another specialist – an appointment was made with Dr A for 9^th September.

On the 2^nd September I finally got to see an Allergist. He recommended a very restricted “elimination diet” which, by that stage, I didn’t have the energy or inclination to follow. I had worked out weeks earlier that the swellings were not related to what I was eating. However, I did buy some allergy free soap, toothpaste and shampoo. And he provided a list of foods/drinks to avoid because of preservatives.

A Heart Murmur

On the 9^th September I saw the Rheumatologist Dr A. Like Dr S she took a comprehensive history. She ordered an extensive battery of blood tests – for HIV, Barmah forest virus, Ross river virus etc. On examining me she detected a heart murmur and ordered a chest CT scan and echo cardiogram. One thing I was sure about was that I had no heart murmur when I passed the comprehensive medical back in May.

Still No Answers

It was the same old story: Dr. A as a Rheumatologist was a connective tissue specialist, not an autoimmune specialist. She suggested seeing a clinical Immunologist, Professor H, and appointment was arranged for 13^th October.

So I spent months on high-dose antihistamines and intermittent short courses of cortisone. The cortisone initially controlled the rash, but as soon as I stopped the treatment the rash came back. Eventually the rash appeared even when I was on cortisone. So the recommended treatment didn’t work. What was worse was that the doctors seemed mystified and perplexed by my multitude of symptoms.

By this stage, based on my diary, I was seeing some emerging patterns: The symptoms appeared more severe around the time I got my period; and also after exercise, if I went to the gym or personal training. I also had the feeling that the antihistamines may have been actually exacerbating the symptoms, particularly the swellings. The most striking instance occurred on the evening of 14^th August within 15 minutes of taking the histamines, my lip suddenly started swelling up and then the swelling progressed to my tongue and throat.

Unstable Mast Cells

A breakthrough of sorts came when a colleague gave Dr R an information sheet about Ketotifen – a mast cell stabiliser – that seemed to explain and (hopefully) treat my symptoms.

Apparently people with chronic urticaria and angioedema do not suffer from specific allergies, but rather an unstable mast cell system. According to the fact sheet, the unstable mast cells leak histamine, prostaglandins and leukotrienes, which result in other associated symptoms, such as headaches, tiredness, lethargy, irritability and difficulty in concentration. It can also affect the gastrointestinal tract causing cramping, bloating, indigestion, regurgitation, flatulence, intermittent diarrhoea and constipation. Many patients suffer from joint pains and muscle pain. These symptoms are due to the inflammatory properties of leaked histamines, prostaglandins and leukotrienes. I was unable to see the doctor who wrote the information sheet, as he only saw asthma patients.

Also, Ketotifen was not available in tablet form in Australia and we had to send to New Zealand for it. Ketotifen is only available in Australia as eye drops. A friend sent me an advertising leaflet for Zaditen “the only triple action, anti-allergy eye drops for symptomatic short term treatment of seasonal allergic conjunctivitis available over the counter without prescription.” Strangely, it was titled Zoe’s Dilemma and featured a cartoon of teary-eyed Zoe “I’ve got minutes to pull myself together!” being ZAPPED with Zaditen by a handsome young white-coated healthcare professional, saying “Only I can give you a quick solution”.

By the time we sent to New Zealand, received the tablets and found a doctor willing to oversee it, I didn’t start the Ketotifen until September. Gradually the swellings became less frequent. The rash remained but became more “normal”.

Back to Urticaria

When I saw the Clinical Immunologist, Professor H, on 13^th October he was the first health professional I’d seen that wasn’t mystified by my many and varied symptoms. He diagnosed severe chronic urticaria and, when shown my photos, said they were classic of severe urticaria. In terms of severity, my condition was in the top 5% he had seen.

He went on to explain that an unstable mast cell system was the basis of all autoimmune conditions. Researchers were just starting to unravel how the immune system works, particularly autoimmunity. He said that researchers had recently discovered that unstable mast cells leaked many chemicals, much more than previously thought (i.e. many more than mentioned in the Ketotifen information sheet). He was currently supervising a PhD student researching this topic.

I queried how it was strange I should, within a two month period, be so badly affected -particularly as I had been so fit before. Professor H said that, for some reason, the fittest people were often the most severely affected by autoimmune disease. It was as if their immune systems were also super fit, and turned in on the body with extra zeal. He also said that there was evidence in support of my intuitions – that symptoms were often worse after exercise; and, for women, worse around the time of menstruation.

The only recommended treatment was a long-term course of high dose cortisone. He explained that long-term cortisone use had some nasty side effects. Although he couldn’t guarantee it, he was confident that the treatment would get rid of the rash. He couldn’t say how long I would have to stay on cortisone. I was to think about the pros and cons of this, and decide whether to start the cortisone when I came to my next appointment in December.

Alternative Therapies

On 28th November I consulted a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner, Dr Z. He was the first health practitioner I had seen who was confident that the rash could be treated successfully. He said there were acupuncture and Chinese herbs specifically for it. I had the treatment and the rash disappeared.

I don’t know whether it was the acupuncture or a combination of acupuncture and the Ketotifen, but something finally worked. I was still having intermittent swellings, but at least the rash was gone.

When I revisited Professor H on 2^nd December, the rash was gone. I decided to stick with the Ketotifen for another 4 months as recommended on the information sheet.

I did remain rash free taking just the Ketotifen, and then remained rash free when I stopped it in March 2009.

The whole experience left me exhausted, I felt as if my life had been put on hold for months. I had to take time off work and could only work part time after that. Not only did it cost me a lot financially in terms of being off work, I had to spend a fortune on antihistamines, Ketotifen, painkillers, indigestion tablets, and assorted other drugs.

In March 2009, just after finishing the Ketotifen and possibly as a result of all I’d been through, I experience for the first time ever an episode of acute anxiety and panic attacks for which I had treatment and counseling.

And Now Cervical Cancer

The biggest shock occurred in March 2011 when I went for my regular pap smear and was diagnosed and treated for cervical adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS). This was 17 months after my previously normal Pap smear, and three years after the first Gardasil shot. All of my previous pap smears had been clean.

I went for my regular pap smear with Dr P. early March 2011. A week later he rang me to say the report was showing glandular-cell abnormalities and I was to come in the following Tuesday for an assessment. [There are two main types of cervical cancer: the more common squamous-cell abnormalities and cancer (squamous carcinoma); and the rare but more aggressive glandular-cell abnormalities and cancer (adenocarcinoma)].

The following Friday I was in surgery and had a cold knife cone biopsy. The results came through the following Wednesday that the margins of the cone biopsy were clear.

I am very aware that I was fortunate – having my screening with a specialist colposcopist and having the surgical procedure within 10 days of the results being received. As a result of this, the cancer was detected early, at the in situ stage.

I have to have a follow-up screening every 6 months to make sure the cancer doesn’t return, and so far so good. I’m reassured that I’m having reliable and expert follow-up

So not only did I experience severe adverse reactions to the vaccine, it is obvious that Gardasil does not even protect against the serious cervical cancer: glandular cell cervical cancer. As AIS is thought to be caused by HPV 16 and 18, the exact viruses the Gardasil vaccine is supposed to protect against. Since I didn’t have the either HPV or cancer a mere 17 months prior to my vaccination, I have to wonder whether the Gardasil vaccine introduced the virus and the cancer into my system.

Recurrence of Urticaria and Angioedema

In June 2011, maybe as a result of stress, I had a recurrence of the urticaria/angioedema, including swelling of my tongue and throat. This time I was touring around Cornwell, UK so it was a little scary not knowing where to locate the local doctor or hospital.

When I saw Professor H a couple of months later, he said researchers in Australia had now developed a new version of the mast-cell stabiliser. It was being trialled with impressive results and they were trying to get the government to approve its use in Australia. He suggested that, as the Ketotifen had worked for me before, I go back onto it. When I eventually got the capsules for New Zealand and started taking them, the symptoms gradually subsided.

When I was telling Professor H. about being in Cornwell at the time of the recurrence, he said “Just as well your tongue didn’t start to swell.” On hearing that I’d had episodes of my tongue and throat swelling both recently and in 2008, he immediately wrote out a script for an epi-pen and told me to carry it at all times. As my mum later commented, it would have been helpful to know this three years earlier in 2008.

Six Years Post Gardasil

So how am I, six years on? I am still struggling with the aftermaths of Gardasil.

Although the urticaria / angioedema haven’t reoccurred for 3 years, I am struggling with an “invisible” legacy of insomnia and fatigue.

My sleep pattern is extremely disrupted. I have had a problem with insomnia since a teenager but, post-Gardasil, this became much more severe. I have been experiencing the strange situation of having no energy, being extremely fatigued, and yet I can’t get to sleep.

In 2010, I made the decision to return to study and relocated to Geelong (about an hour away from Melbourne) to attend Deakin University. Distance, work and university commitments made it impossible to have consistent follow-up treatment with Dr Z. TCM seems the best prospect to help with my sleep/energy problems, but unfortunately wasn’t an option for me at the time. I didn’t have the energy to go another round of finding local doctors, explaining symptoms, having more blood test, etc. So I battled on as best I could – herbal tea, Valerian, prescription sleeping tablets – nothing worked.

After the 2011, recurrence of symptoms my sleep patterns were even more disrupted. Early in 2012, I saw Dr M., a sleep specialist, and did a sleep test. I was awake all night and was officially diagnosed with sleep narcolepsy – falling asleep during the day due to exhaustion from insomnia.

A more visible legacy of Gardasil has been with my skin. Post-Gardasil my skin has been shocking with acne much worse than I’ve ever experienced, even when I was a teenager.

On reading Gabriella’s story I realise that maybe I can finally find some answers to regaining my health… it’s just a matter of knowing where to start and who to see.

However, the main message I want to get out to other Gardasil women – and all young women – is the need for annual pap smears. Dr P, who diagnosed and treated me for cervical adenocarcinoma, says there has been an increase in the number of young women developing this type of cancer, and that annual Pap smears are essential to monitor for it. Again, I have to wonder if the Gardasil vaccine and the increase in cervical cancers in young women are connected.

Pap smears saved my life, not bloody Gardasil.

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Five Years After Gardasil: Nursing my Mitochondria

by Gabriella Chow

Published on April 1, 2014

11895 views

My journey with Gardasil began innocently in Australia. In 2008 after two years of pervasive marketing, I fit right within the 26 years old ‘market segment’. I qualified for a free vaccination. Little did I know what was about to hit me; not once, but three times.

Health and Vaccination History Pre-Gardasil

I was in good health prior to Gardasil; hard working, athletic and traveling extensively. I had all the required vaccines by the French medical authorities for a person from my generation.

Between 2006-2007 corresponding to the beginning of my Master’s degree, I was injected with a number of vaccines that I thought, based on medical advice, were needed to cover international travel: diphtheria, typhoid, yellow fever, hepatitis A and B, the flu vaccine, and a tetanus boost.

Mid-2008, I had my first shot of Gardasil (20/06/2008 GARDASIL SEQUENCE 1, Batch No.K0176). My second shot was in October 2008 (10/10/2008 GARDASIL SEQUENCE 2, Batch No.K2307). The 3^rd sequence of Gardasil was injected in February 2009 (05/02/2009 GARDASIL SEQUENCE 3, Batch No.K5754).

Post Gardasil: Severe Hypersomnia, Dizziness, Tremors and Weight Loss

A flu-like episode with high fever lasting over a week occurred following the second vaccine shot. Full-blown hypersomnia first manifested when I fell into a deep sleep for 17 hours straight. Somnolence worsened for several months after the 2^nd and 3^rd Gardasil shots, until suddenly, and seemingly out of the blue, I was able to be awake for an average of 45 minutes to 3 hours a day.

During that initial phase of the syndrome, lifting a fork to eat, cooking and even walking to the kitchen were all too much effort. I needed to lie down or I would fall asleep on my computer keyboard. As I did not know the difference between tiredness and somnolence, I had difficulty explaining my initial symptoms to my doctors; yawning away through consultations until my post-consultation nap.

I experienced severe dizziness for the first time in what was to become a recurrent manifestation of this syndrome for the next five years. The dizziness intensified to the point of losing balance. I could no longer attend my regular weight-lifting classes: the floor would spin when I would pick up the weights. I tried to fight the lack of balance with my mind-over-matter method. I even managed to drag myself to a gym class during those first days of illness, seeking to force my body back into action. I thought willpower alone could jerk my body back into functioning. It didn’t work. My attempt was met with a record 10 minutes in a BodyPump class, followed by several hours of sleep. After 10 days of this dizziness and somnolence, I asked a friend to drive me to a doctor.

The Parade of Doctors Begins: Untangling the Gardasil Reaction

Doctor #1, my regular GP, said I was fine and just to rest. By then I also had hand tremors as well as dizziness and somnolence. I went to doctor #2, this time at our University Health Center. She ordered blood tests, all of which came back normal. I recall her telling me that I was healthy and that it was ‘all in my head’. Supposedly, the tremors that she could clearly observe were ‘all in my head’. She thought I was faking my symptoms. Within the next six weeks, I went to see doctor #3. Her diagnosis was Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) because I had – in her terms – ‘burned out my neurons’ through extensive intellectual efforts.

The next five months are a blur. I don’t recall much other than sleeping. I remember falling asleep everywhere instantly. I would fall asleep slumped on my desk or anywhere I sat. I would warn taxi drivers that I might fall asleep in their cab, and ask them to kindly wake me up at destination should this happen. This was in addition to the 10-12 hours per night I would sleep and the several hour naps I had in the morning and in the afternoon every single day.

More Doctors and More Symptoms

I moved from Australia to France and saw doctor #4. Soon, a new symptom began. It was tachycardia (rapid heart rate). My heart would pound furiously and I would be out of breath going up stairs, despite how athletic I had been just a few months before. Doctor #4 exhausted all possible tests and he referred me to an internal medicine specialist at Foch Hospital in France, doctor # 5. He suggested narcolepsy in his referral letter.

By then I had developed intense salt cravings which went hand in hand with the dizziness and tremendous thirst. During ‘waves’ of extreme somnolence, I had noticed that eating salt helped. I would ask for a bag of potato chips, to which I would add a lot of extra salt. Overtime, I figured out that it had to be sea salt otherwise it did not have the same effect on the dizziness or other symptoms. During these episodes I slurred my speech and had trouble speaking. This was often accompanied by major episodes of somnolence. I had noted that any exertion of physical energy was profoundly draining (e.g. walking, standing up, cooking); so too would mental energy demands such as strong emotions, empathy or anger. If became angry, I would fall asleep, as if the energy output required for anger was too much demand on my already drained body.

Since my salt cravings were so intense, doctor #5 suggested a series of tests, including one for adrenal gland tumors. This was July 2010. All the tests came back normal apart from a vitamin D deficiency.

Doctor #5: Narcolepsy without Cataplexy?

Doctor #5 concluded that I had narcolepsy without cataplexy since I had the capacity to sit down before falling asleep, rather than the cataplexy associated with collapsing asleep. He prescribed 300mg/day of Modiodal (Modafinil-Australia; Provigil-US).

The results of the treatment with Modiodal were tremendous. Since this ‘wake-promoting agent’ is used in combat by special forces, it was bound to help me control my somnolence. I was able to get much more done during the day, although I was still extremely somnolent. I began my weight-lifting class again, with better results, but I still needed 2 to 3 hours of sleep after a class and I was still dizzy and had all the other associated, up-to-then unexplainable symptoms.

Oh Wait, not Really – Says Doctor #6

In October 2010, I saw a sleep specialist, doctor #6. She told me:

“I see a lot of women like you. Women in your generation have a lot of pressure professionally and personally. You don’t have narcolepsy. You have psychogenic hypersomnia because you have been through a lot professionally and personally.”

In other words, she was implying that it was all in my head. She suggested that I would recover in about six months and did not run any tests in the sleep lab. She prescribed 400mg of Modiodal a day and told me to resist somnolence during the day to seek to force my body back into a wake-sleep routine. So I tried, although not too successfully. By then I had my nap armchair at work where I would have 10-minute power naps when I was too somnolent and dizzy. The increase in medication helped me resist the daytime somnolence but all of the other symptoms remained and some new ones appeared. I was now very sensitive to sound and light and needed sunglasses even indoors.

Powering Through my Declining Health Post Gardasil

Gradually, it seems that my body adjusted to the higher dose of Modiodal and I developed a tolerance for the dizziness and the somnolence. I enrolled in a Ph.D. program in November 2010. By early 2011 – I was both working full-time and starting a Ph.D. Being highly determined, I thought I would make my body function again, and yes, I was going to do this Ph.D. and to have this full-time job despite whatever tantrum my body was having with its dizziness, somnolence and other symptoms. I kept powering through. I thought the diagnosis of hypersomnia was final.

Another Six Months and Still No Improvement

Six months after doctor #6 told me I would be healed, I was no better. Her explanation for my lack of recovery was my “hectic” lifestyle. She told me, “you work too hard, give it another year, you should be fully resting for 6 full months but I understand you have to work.”

I was not making any progress on the somnolence, the dizziness, the light and noise sensitivity, or the salt cravings and thirst. I could barely hold it together on the physical front to keep up a career and my PHD. I did not have any energy to look more into the medical puzzle I was facing.

During the treatment when Modiodal was working well, doctor #6 tried another medication on me – to replace the Modiodal due to some changes in government funding for this medication which apparently did not qualify anymore for non-narcoleptics. She prescribed 80 mg of Ritalin. By early 2012, this new anti-somnolence medication made me extremely ill, so she changed the prescription back to Modiodal. My weight had plummeted to a low 48kg, despite eating normally.

US Doctors Post Gardasil: Pieces to the Puzzle

From late 2012 to early 2013, I spent six months in the US. I needed to follow-up on the hypersomnia. I met doctor #7 in the US and put him in touch with doctor #6 in France. I told him that I was convinced I was not properly diagnosed. ‘Psychogenic’ hypersomnia sounded like nonsense to me and it was increasingly obvious that we needed to reassess the symptoms. I told him that I was very dizzy most of the time, that light sensitivity had increased to a point of needing sunglasses indoors, that I had salt cravings etc. Also by then I was particularly skinny. I told him that I had discovered that exercise was allowing me to function without dizziness for a few hours, post weight-lifting especially. I started noticing a thick dry scale on my scalp. It was not dandruff and the inflammation – whatever it was – was very painful. Some new diagnoses emerged.

Hypothyroid. Doctor #7 in the US identified that I was hypothyroid. The thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels came back high at 7.89 uIU/mL indicating that I was hypothyroid in spite of being skinny. Gaining weight is more common with this thyroid condition. Doctor #7 thought that the hypersomnia was due to the hypothyroidism, and that levothyroxine would fix it all, the hypersomnolence, the dizziness, and the light sensitivity. This was in January 2013. He referred me to a sleep specialist for further testing and a dermatologist for the scalp problem.
Low Potassium. I was also found to have low potassium levels although nothing much was thought of it at the time. This was a relevant clue as we shall see later in this post.
Vitamin B Deficiency. The dermatologist, doctor #8, tested me for tropical parasites given the countries I had traveled to. All came back normal. She seemed concerned though and suggested a complex of vitamin B supplements because in her experience, deficiencies in certain forms of vitamin B can trigger these sort of dermatological manifestations. I had no time to follow-up with her due to travel, nor to order the vitamins. I was too focused on the dizziness and hypersomnia and newly discovered thyroid problems and could not fathom a link to a vitamin deficiency. In retrospect, with what I now know of thiamin deficiency, I realize she was probably correct.
Back to Narcolepsy. The sleep specialist in the US, doctor #9, requested a sleep study because he suspected narcolepsy without cataplexy. He told me that I did not fit into the typical narcoleptic profile. The sleep study was done in February 2013 after 13 days of weaning myself off the Modiodal (yet having started the levothyroxine). By the time I completely weaned myself off the Modiodal for the sleep study, I could not exercise anymore and I was back to falling asleep all the time. In fact the sleep technician had to walk into the test room to wake me up during the day-time part of the sleep study because – as those who have done sleep studies know – you have to stay awake during certain periods of time for the tests to be valid. I was unable to resist the somnolence and was falling asleep uncontrollably on my ‘wake-up’ chair. I had an average of 4.75 minutes in a Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT), indicative of severe somnolence. I communicated the information to doctor #6 in France.

Post Gardasil Idiopathic Hypersomnia, Plus Hypothyroid

Doctor #9, seeing the results of the sleep test, told me it was clearly NOT psychogenic hypersomnia and clearly not Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). It was not narcolepsy either. He suggested ‘idiopathic’ hypersomnia or ‘vaccine-related’ hypersomnia. I was also shown to have mild sleep apnea. By April 2013 I had abnormally high Reverse T3 levels and Thyroxine (T4) levels despite normal TSH levels. I went back to doctor #7. We agreed to increase the levothyroxine to 100Mcg per day.

Back to France – Finding Support at Monastery

I had to leave the US in April 2013 to defend my PhD in France. Doctor #9, the sleep-specialist in the US, kindly gave me the equivalent of Modiodal samples for 3 months: I could not order more than one month of Modiodal at a time and had no more medical coverage in France. To manage the hypersomnia, I was given instead of 400mg of Modiodal per day, 250mg of Armodafinil a day. So there I was in France, in a new town, actually in a monastery, between April 2013 and August 2013.

Diet and Exercise Clues: Possible Mitochondrial Dysfunction Post Gardasil

By then I had noticed that sugar and other carbohydrates triggered somnolence. Complex carbohydrates did not affect me. This was in addition to the extra sea salt at strategic times to reduce episodes of somnolence. The extra salt induced extreme thirst most of the time. I found that weightlifting would allow me to function without dizziness for about 24 hours, and 15 to 30 minutes of jogging would give me 4-6 hours of functioning without dizziness. In fact, when I felt most dizzy – if I did pushups or lifted weights – I was guaranteed a reduction in dizziness. I communicated this with Dr. Marrs at her website, Hormones Matter. She had found research showing that exercise induced mitochondrial biogenesis. Somehow, my body knew that too, although, at the time I had no idea why it worked.

At one point during my stay at the monastery, my symptoms worsened. I developed what is called “tunnel vision” and the light sensitivity became extreme. I needed to wear my sunglasses most of the time, even indoors. I needed eye drops otherwise my eyes would burn. I felt like I was passing out most of the time. My eye bags were strange. They went down to my jawbones across the cheeks. Noise and conversations would exhaust me. I started eating on my own, not in the commissary with the others. This coincided with the re-emergence of heart palpitations. I was unable to run. Some monks and nuns began asking me if I was eating enough. No matter what or how much I ate, I would not gain wait. I kept losing weight.

This was probably the worst time of the illness. When the dizziness would manifest, I would feel like my energy was being completely drained from my body. If I could put to words the mental image I had when this would happen, it was as if light – I take as representing my energy levels – was leaking or rather shooting upwards from the top middle part of my skull. However delirious this sounds, and I was very ill, somehow I took it as my body telling me through the delirium that there was ‘an energy leak’. That was my inspiration to find a way to heal and my task was to find the biochemical source of this ‘leak’.

Hashimoto’s and Low Gammaglobulin

I went to see doctor #10 in a small village in Southern France. TSH levels had gone down to 0.1 so I had shifted from hypothyroid to hyperthyroid. We found out that I had in fact Hashimoto’s disease in addition to the ‘idiopathic’ hypersomnia. I had hypogammaglobulinemia and low total protein levels. I had lost 7 kilos between February 2013 and June 2013. Here again, Dr. Marrs had written about post Gardasil Hashimoto’s.

Doctor #10 told me to reduce the levothyroxine, and that I should see a blood specialist in hospital due to the hypogammaglobulinemia. The blood specialist was on holiday. Concerned with the way my health was degrading, I called a friend in Paris. Worried, and with the best of intentions, he sought to help me out and called another doctor in Paris for advice. I was subsequently told I had an appointment with doctor #11.

Doctor #11 was Lecherous

I saw doctor #11 in Paris and he told me that the Gardasil vaccine had no side effects, and that obviously all of my symptoms are in my head. So there, about 4 weeks before defending my Ph.D., an expensive doctor who knew nothing about my health asked that I stop taking the medicine that keeps me awake despite the hypersomnia and gave me a prescription for lithium ‘to help’ me wean myself off the Modiodal. He then proceeded to quiz me on my sex life, alluding to some throwback of female hysteria and repressed sexuality as a diagnosis. He seemed way too tickled by what he imagined was my sex life than in the debilitating health problems I was bringing to the medical consultation. Out of the blue, he asked: ‘do you have any issues climaxing?’. To this day I do not know how to relate his question to my light sensitivity, hypersomnia, salt-cravings, hand tremors, thirst, Hashimoto’s, dizziness and palpitations.

I became concerned when he intimated that, should all results come back negative, and he made sure I knew he thought they would come back negative, that he would prescribe appointments with a retired psychiatrist, a friend of his, to work on my thought patterns. He then calmly alluded to electroshock treatment on patients around my age at a clinic he was working at in Canada decades ago as a very good technique to retrain psychosomatic women. Yes, an expensive doctor who liked at one point in his life to experiment with electroshocks on ill women. As my exit strategy with this strange character, I told him I would indeed stop the Modiodal and go ahead with the lab tests.

I headed straight back to the monastery in Southern France, more perplexed with my health than before traveling. I arrived at the monastery almost destabilized. When I told the Mother Superior about the tone of the appointment, she burst out laughing. Her humor comforted me tremendously.

Doctor #12 – Managing the Hashimoto’s Post Gardasil

The next day, other friends had organized a medical appointment in a hospital in Montpellier, in Southern France, with an endocrinologist, doctor #12. She confirmed Hashimoto’s and asked that my thyroxine dosage be reduced. She referred me to an internist doctor closer to the monastery in another hospital.

Doctor # 13 – Probably Gardasil but You’ll Have to Live with It

Doctor #13 was an oncologist, in-hospital internal medicine. He ran a number of other tests and another MRI for pituitary issues. All came back normal apart from the thyroid function, but we already knew that. At one point he suggested we test for Breimer’s disease, however, the tests showed normal vitamin B12 levels. Tests for Lupus came back negative.

Doctor #13 told me that medicine was not advanced enough to offer me a clear diagnosis. He told me that possibly Gardasil triggered the hypersomnia, but that at this point in time without the exact mechanisms or the source of my syndrome, I’d have to live with the state of ‘no diagnosis’.

Despite my degrading health, somehow I defended and passed my Ph.D. in July 2013. In August 2013, I headed back to Australia.

Treating Post Gardasil Reactions in Australia – Doctors 14, 15 and 16

I needed a sleep specialist in Australia for the treatment of the hypersomnia. I had to get another GP (doctor #14) and sleep specialist in Australia, doctor #15. The sleep specialist was very attentive and made sure I could continue with the anti-somnolence medication. He also suggested we try a CPAP machine due to the minor sleep apnea. He started communicating with doctor #9 in the US. He mentioned that in children, what is considered ‘minor’ sleep apnea can trigger all sorts of health problems. Excessive coughing did not make it possible to continue with the trial test.

Since finding out I had Hashimoto’s in addition to the hypersomnia, and that my blood results were off, I was convinced of the need to refine the diagnosis. It was time to change tactics.

I went back to doctor #14, my new GP in Australia and shared my concerns. I also requested a referral to an endocrinologist to manage the thyroid disease I now have. She organized a referral to an endocrinologist, doctor #16. The endocrinologist was oblivious to the set of symptoms that accompanied Hashimoto’s. In only two visits, she managed to stabilize my TSH levels with 93.25 Mcg Eutroxsig per day and that was it. She did not want to see me for another year – to her the entity she was treating was Hashimoto’s and was unrelated to the other set of symptoms. She suggested yoga to reduce salt-cravings and light sensitivity; thereby implying these other symptoms were unrelated to an underlying medical condition.

I went back to doctor #14. My thirst and salt cravings, my light and noise sensitivity were so bad. I was exercising with military discipline to fight the dizziness, to counter what I now understand to probably be mitochondrial injury. I asked doctor #14 to run a number of tests and also to find an immunologist for me. The sleep specialist, doctor #15 in Australia, supported my consulting an immunologist because of my difficulties fighting infections and also low IgA, Hashimoto’s etc. Doctor #14 listened to him and while organizing an appointment with the immunologist he suggested, she also sent me to see a General Physician, doctor #18. Doctor #18 was more interested to know whether or not I had had breast augmentation ‘due to their shape’ than in my actual health concerns. He was an Australian version of French doctor #11. Needless to say, I never went back.

Meanwhile, I had learned through the Hormones Matter website, thanks to Dr. Chandler Marrs’ work, Dr. Derrick Lonsdale’s expertise, and a courageous mother, that four patients with unusual symptoms post-Gardasil (3 girls and a boy) had been tested and found to be thiamine (thiamin) deficient, using the erythrocyte transketolase test. Beriberi was at the core of their symptoms, and for whom doctors were able to do nothing prior to that diagnosis.

I tried to get the correct test for this deficiency. This was in September 2013. After six weeks of emails to three doctors (two in-hospital specialists and doctor #14), explaining the different types of thiamine testing, I realized I was getting nowhere. I learned then that doctor #14, was under pressure by the boss of her practice to stop ordering tests for me. Even though I am not depressed, she offered anti-depressants. I decided not to return. I went on a hunt for another GP to replace doctor #14. The new GP, doctor #19 ran a number of tests linked to nutrient absorption issues. All were normal.

Finally, an Ally – Doctor #17

In October 2013, my total protein levels were still low, IgA was low and I had very low vitamin D. Antithyroid peroxidase (TPO) was high. I had low potassium levels again (3.1mmol/L), which was consistent with the low potassium levels noted months earlier. (I now understand that this is typical of thiamine deficiency, or Beriberi). I also had a consistently low white cell count measured in France and in Australia.

Thanks to doctor #15, I met doctor #17, an Australian in-hospital immunologist who ordered another series of tests. He was interested in Derrick Lonsdale’s articles on the post Gardasil thiamine deficiency. Thanks to Dr. Marrs’ encouragement, they wrote to each other. We tried to get the thiamine deficiency test done in Australia. It was impossible to locate one lab that could do the correct testing. In September 2013 and October 2013, whole blood B1 levels were normal, at 143nmol/L (lab range: 66-200) and at 65ug/L (lab range: 28-85). Yet what needed to be tested was the activity of thiamine. Dr. Derrick Lonsdale makes it exceedingly clear that measuring transketolase is the only way to show that the activity of thiamine is normal. Transketolase requires two cofactors, thiamine and magnesium. The erythrocyte transketolase test is designed to show their deficiency or abnormal chemistry by detecting the activity of the enzyme.

While I was in a Southeast Asian country in November 2013, I tried again to get the erythrocyte transketolase test done. No luck. I tried getting the test in Japan through doctor #20, a researcher who was contacted for me in Japan. Beriberi is more common in Japan – I thought – they had to have labs for this, right? I asked the Japanese through a researcher in France, doctor #21. He tried six labs in Japan. No luck.

By late November 2013, after repeated failed attempts to get the transketolase test and my continued worsening health, Doctor #17, the immunologist, and I decided we would just try the thiamine replacement treatment with TTFD suggested by Derrick Lonsdale. Dr. Lonsdale tells me that TTFD stands for thiamine tetrahydrofurfuryl disulfide. It is the synthetic equivalent of allithiamine, the naturally occurring disulfide derivative of vitamin B1(thiamine) in garlic. Clinical, animal experiments and biochemical research all have shown that it has therapeutic properties far beyond those of simple thiamine replacement.

Please do not try this alone without a doctor’s supervision as there can be dangerous paradoxical reactions.

Thiamine Replacement Treatment – Surviving the Paradoxical Reactions

I started in November with 100mg / day of TTFD. After 5 days I decreased the dose to 50mg / day. I had been warned by Dr. Lonsdale of the initial worsening of symptoms that he calls ‘paradox’. So I knew that my symptoms might get worse before they got better. I had no idea how severe that paradoxical reaction would be!

I want to explain this thing that Dr. Lonsdale calls ‘paradox’. He explained it to me as follows:

Unfortunately, we disregard history and the struggles that researchers went through in order to define the cause of the vitamin deficiency disease, beriberi. These are simply lost to the awareness of the modern physician. It was well known, when this disease was common, that the dangerous time of initiating treatment was directly proportional to the severity of the disease and how long it had been in existence. Under no accounts whatever should POTS be treated with TTFD without the care of a knowledgeable physician.

The initial phase of TTFD intake landed me four times in hospital emergency with extreme dizziness and heart palpitations over a period of five weeks. On one occasion, I was in two different hospitals in one day with chest pains and palpitations and very severe dizziness. On another instance, the gym called in an ambulance when my heart rate would not go down and I was extremely dizzy and incoherent. I recall blurting out to some petrified gym staff that I needed to have my ‘heart pulse’ monitored when in fact I meant heart rate.

In ER visits, I met resident doctors #22 and #23. One wanted me to see a neurologist and an endocrinologist. Her letter: ‘Presents L sided chest pain – sharp pinching pain…objectively in emergency. No criteria for admission @ present… would benefit from a review by both neurologist and endocrinologist’. One other resident in another hospital wanted me to see a cardiologist: ‘intermittent palpitations… thank you for seeing this patient for consideration of halter monitor’. Both were baffled by my symptoms. Dr. Lonsdale explained that this was a normal and expected temporary effect. My last ER visit was early December 2013.

Are the Post Gardasil Illnesses Related to Thiamine Deficiency?

Dr. Lonsdale’s work shows a connection between thiamine deficiency and dysautonomia. Thiamine deficiency Beriberi is actually a prototype for dysautonomia in its early stages because it affects the hypothalamic/autonomic/endocrine axis. I am inclined to agree, given my recent experience. Whether I was thiamine deficient prior to the vaccine or not, is now impossible to determine. What has become clear is that post Gardasil vaccine, my body went into a tailspin, for which no prior diagnosis or offered treatment worked.

I now understand that the symptoms of my condition are indicative of three forms of dysautonomia, all of which appear to have been induced by thiamine deficiency: the postural and orthostatic components of POTS were indicated by dizziness and fainting upon standing up. Cerebral Salt Wasting Syndrome was indicated by the intense salt cravings and Beriberi was confirmed with my positive reaction to thiamine treatment. The hypersomnia, since it has improved, appears to be caused by thiamine deficiency as well. Hashimoto’s disease, to which I have a genetic predisposition, was part of the mess and I have since learned that it is very common post medication or vaccine. It is of course possible, according to Dr. Lonsdale, that a latent, asymptomatic thiamine deficiency was triggered into clinical significance by the Gardasil vaccination.

Healing Post Gardasil

Since the ‘paradox’ passed early December 2013, with the TTFD treatment, I have had more energy than I have had in five years. The constant dizziness is gone. My extreme salt cravings are gone. My skin has improved. Light and noise sensitivity both have diminished. I have been able to put on weight. I do not need sunglasses when driving at night or earplugs in noisy environments anymore.

Going forward, I am giving my body what it needs to heal. Gradually, we are titrating my hypersomnia medications downward while providing my body with critical nutrients to feed the mitochondria. Currently – in addition to crucial daily exercise – my strategy is the following per day:

Early morning: probiotics; 200mg Modiodal; 93.25 thyroxine
Mid-morning: 50mg TTFD (Allithiamine, Ecological Formulas); 150mg Magnesium (works with TTFD); 1000 iu vit D3 (to counter vit D deficiency)
Lunch: 200mg or 175mg Modiodal
Mid-afternoon: 500mg Acetyl L-Carnitine; 150mg Co-Enzyme Q10
Night: 66mg TTFD, 1000µg B12, 66mg B6, 69mg vit.E, 66mg dl-α-as tocopheryl succinate, 20mg pantothenic acid calcium, 6.6mg γ-Oryzanol (2 pills of EX-PLUS Alinamin, Takeda Pharmaceuticals)

Note that initially between November 2013 and February 2014, I was on only 50mg of TTFD and 150mg of magnesium, plus a multivitamin. Now beyond the paradoxical phase, with the TTFD supplements my energy levels have soared. I decided to gradually increase the TTFD to 83mg. I am now at 116mg. Since my ailment seems to point to the mitochondria, I decided early March 2014 to add Acetyl L-Carnitine and Co-enzyme Q10. I also added probiotics to counter damage from ongoing medication. I now seek to decrease the Modiodal levels, gradually.

Post Script: I Was Given the Key to my Health at the Monastery

During the worst of my illness, a key was given to me in the form of both a pair and a trio. The trio was Dr. Chandler Marrs, Dr. Derrick Lonsdale, and the mother of Gardasil-injured patient. And the trio was paired with a context conducive to finding answers. Let me explain what I mean by the context.

I was in the last leg of my Ph.D. in France. During this challenging time physically, mentally and intellectually, but also financially, I was offered refuge in a monastery. My health was severely degrading. It was in this context of prayer, under the protection of this religious community while finishing my Ph.D. dissertation and preparing my Ph.D. defense, with a fantastic Wi-Fi connection at the monastery, that I began searching furiously for answers.

I needed to understand this complex biochemical mess that was manifesting in my body. What doctors were consistently discarding could not be this complicated to understand. The symptoms of this syndrome were not psychogenic: they did not occur in a chemical vacuum. Yet my doctors were baffled. And they were discarding my symptoms as an unsolvable mystery in not just one country, but in three countries: Australia, France and the United States.

Research on adverse reactions to Gardasil, as presented on Hormones Matter changed my perspective of this illness. A growing body of evidence seemed to indicate a link between Gardasil and a set of side effects ranging from Postural Hypotension Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) to cerebellar ataxia, autoimmune disease and debilitating somnolence.

After countless GPs, I was referred to three in-hospital specialists to treat multiple conditions: a sleep specialist, an endocrinologist and an immunologist.

It turns out that the Gardasil vaccine-induced hypersomnia and vaccine-triggered Hashimoto’s was just the tip of the iceberg. I also had Cerebral Salt Wasting Syndrome, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome and Beriberi, all forms of dysautonomia, all potentially related to thiamine deficiency. None of this was detected or even considered by the physicians I sought help from, barring the dermatologist doctor #8 who mentioned the B vitamins as potentially involved in my illness. Even if the doctors had considered thiamine deficiency, testing in commercial labs was insufficient to detect it, leaving patients like me to fend for ourselves.

Through Hormones Matter, Dr. Chandler Marrs’ research and writing has helped me to connect the dots for my post Gardasil ordeal. Along with Dr. Derrick Lonsdale’s work showing the array of symptoms caused by thiamine deficiency, I now have a more accurate diagnosis and the treatment needed to heal. Together, Dr. Lonsdale’s research and Dr. Marrs’ articles on mitochondrial injury, are the closest I have come to a well-rounded explanation for the complex range of symptoms that I experienced over the last five years. Their work is giving me and my physicians treatment options that were otherwise unknown.

A few days ago, I discovered the work of Dr. François-Jérôme Authier and Dr. Romain K. Gherardi. Their work unveils even more of the complex chemical interactions at the core of this multifaceted syndrome.

What I Learned

Complex diseases sometimes have simple solutions, but to get there requires communication and collaboration amongst patients, doctors and researchers. My illness crossed medical boundaries requiring a multidisciplinary approach. There were no immediately knowable diagnoses, no medications that could effectively treat what was ailing me and, because of which, many physicians disregarded my symptoms as unsolvable, and the worst of them – thankfully a limited number – attributed my illness to psychogenic manifestations. If it were not for the online publication Hormones Matter, where patients, researchers and physicians work to find solutions to complex diseases and reactions, I would not be writing this post. I would be too ill.

A Note of Gratitude

I am profoundly grateful to the eclectic, geographically dispersed medical team which has helped me make sense of my ordeal. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Chandler Marrs for her out-of-the-ordinary patience and dedication to research and understanding adverse reactions, for making sure patients with complex diseases are heard. I am very grateful to Dr. Derrick Lonsdale for both his wisdom and his generosity in sharing, at 88 years old, his depth of knowledge on thiamine. May this knowledge be put to good use. His research legacy is a powerful one. I am grateful to Doctor #15 for being attentive and considering the possibility of a link between thiamine deficiency and some sleep disorders; to Doctor #17 for being willing to listen to a patient and to try the TTFD treatment; and to Doctor #21 for activating medical research networks both in Japan and France to seek to help me out. I am making sure that Doctors #15 in Australia and #9 in the US are in touch regarding the impact TTFD has had on the hypersomnia in my case.

The Pharma Funded Promotion of HPV Vaccines

by Judy Wilyman, MSc

Published on January 16, 2014

4953 views

Promotional campaigns for HPV vaccines have informed women that infections from HPV-16 and -18 are the cause of most cervical cancer. However, in 2006/7 when HPV vaccination programs were implemented globally, the scientific community knew that most women do not develop cervical cancer or warts after any type of HPV infection – including HPV-16/-18. HPV infections from all sub-types are found in high frequency among women with normal cervices and cervical cancer is a rare outcome from these infections. This demonstrates that HPV infection of any sub-type (including HPV-16 and -18) is not predictive of cancer; particularly as ninety percent of HPV infections have no clinical consequences at all. It has been known for decades that environmental and lifestyle co-factors are also necessary for HPV infections to progress to cervical cancer. This is why 83% of cervical cancer occurs in the developing countries.

Does the HPV Vaccine Prevent Cervical Cancer?

The promotional campaigns for HPV vaccines have been designed and funded by the pharmaceutical companies. This vaccine has not been demonstrated to prevent cervical cancer. It was trialled against a surrogate for cervical cancer – pre-cursor lesions (grade 2/3) in 15-26 year old women – and these lesions are not predictive of cancer later in life. More than 95% of high-grade lesions (CIN 3) in young women (15-26 years) regress without treatment. In addition, the phase 3 clinical trials that tested the vaccine against pre-cursor lesions were conducted from 2003 to 2007 and were not complete when the HPV vaccine was licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration in June 2006. The vaccine was fast tracked for approval by the FDA due to industry lobbying and Merck ensured that Gardasil® was not just approved for high-risk groups. The FDA approved the vaccine for universal use in all women even though it was known that many co-factors, that were not prevalent in developed countries (Australia, USA and UK), were essential for HPV infections to progress to cervical cancer. The time frame from application to approval of the HPV vaccine by the FDA was only 6 months and 3 weeks later the CDC recommended the vaccine for use in all women.

Yet the phase 3 clinical trials to determine the safety and efficacy of this vaccine against cervical cancer were not completed until 2007. In the US, the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act removes liability from vaccine manufacturers for all design faults and negligence relating to their vaccines [1]. The US government has a no-fault compensation program that is tax-payer funded. This program removes all liability from the vaccine manufacturers and there is no onus to demonstrate that their products are safe and effective before they are implemented in the population. However, only Americans can seek compensation from the US government program. People who are harmed by HPV vaccines in other countries, such as Australia, receive no compensation from their governments.

Lobbying for HPV Vaccine Approval

Merck & Co is the manufacturer of the Gardasil® vaccine and when the medical director, Dr. Richard Haupt, was questioned about the speed with which the HPV vaccine was brought to the market he replied ‘Our hope and belief is that this is a remarkable vaccine that will have a huge impact on women’ [2]. ‘Hope’ and ‘belief’ are not the same as scientific evidence.

Politicians were lobbied and invited to receptions urging them to legislate against a ‘global killer’ [2]. Abramson, the chairman of the committee of the CDC that recommended the vaccine for all girls aged 11 or 12, stated ‘there was incredible pressure from industry and politics’ to approve this vaccine [2]. Diane Harper, a scientist involved in the development of the vaccine, agreed ‘Merck lobbied every opinion leader, women’s group, medical society, politicians and went directly to the people – it created a sense of panic that says you have to have this vaccine now’ [2]. In the US pharmaceutical companies are allowed to advertise directly to the public and the campaigns for HPV vaccines were very aggressive.

Educating Physicians about the HPV Vaccine

It was important for Merck to promote the vaccine through trusted sources and this was done by securing government reimbursement and mandates to promote the vaccine to all women, not just high-risk populations [3]. This enabled Merck to fund the professional medical associations (PMA’s) to promote the vaccine. The pharmaceutical companies supplied the medical associations with a Speaker Lecture Kit. This included ready-made presentations and letters to promote Gardasil® as a preventative for cervical cancer, even though the data was incomplete. The commercials for Gardasil® stated in small print ‘the duration of protection has not been established’ [2]. Much of the promotional material did not address the complexity of the issues surrounding the vaccine and did not provide balanced advice regarding the risks and benefits of the vaccine [3]. It was also presented in a way that obscured the involvement of pharmaceutical companies.

Doctors and nurses were recruited for an ‘Educate the Educators’ program created by the pharmaceutical companies to train health professionals to promote the vaccine. The PMA’s maintained a registry of educators and participants lectured to thousands of healthcare professionals. Hundreds of doctors were paid $4,500 per 50 minute lecture to present the information supplied by the pharmaceutical companies at Merck sponsored conferences [3]. They were also paid to attend advisory board meetings to discuss the vaccine [2]. In addition, there has also been an increase in cervical cancer awareness for patient groups financed with the help of Merck and GlaxosmithKline: often the financial support is indirect so patients are unaware that ‘expert’ advice has been paid for by the vaccine makers [2].

One of the Speaker Kit medical slides stated ‘Cervical cancer screening is described as secondary prevention identifying a precursor lesion; the HPV vaccine is primary prevention that would eliminate the cause of cervical cancer’ (Speaker Lecture Kit slide 13 in Rothman and Rothman 2009). This information is dishonest because it does not inform women that HPV alone is not sufficient to cause cervical cancer and also that there are 13+ other cancer causing strains of HPV that are not covered by the vaccine. Hence, the vaccine will not eliminate the cause of cervical cancer.

Whilst the slides acknowledged the uneven distribution of cervical cancer rates globally they did not draw attention to the risk factors that make cervical cancer a higher risk for women in developing countries. This knowledge is critical to women in determining the necessity for using this vaccine. The education campaigns emphasized the worldwide incidence of this disease whilst leaving out the risk factors for the disease and precautions about the risks of vaccines. Merck also funded the American College Health Association (ACHA) Vaccine Toolkit for clinicians [3]. This included talking points, sample e-mail messages to students and parents and sample press releases and public service announcements. At no time has the public been informed that the information they received on this vaccine was designed by pharmaceutical companies.

Protecting Population Health

The pharmaceutically funded promotional campaigns for HPV vaccines have maximized the threat of HPV infections and minimised the environmental and lifestyle co-factors that are necessary for the development of cervical cancer. The public places its trust in medical associations to provide non-biased science to health professionals for the promotion of medical products to the community. Clearly this trust has been breached in the case of HPV vaccines. At a minimum the public is entitled to be informed openly about relationships with industry and precise funding arrangements in order that they can weigh up the credibility of the information. This was an intentional deception as the pharmaceutical companies sought to present their information through trusted sources and the PMA’s condoned it.

Population health cannot be protected if there is no accountability for the health information that is supplied to doctors from industry funded research and presented to the community in the mainstream media.

About the author: Judy Wilyman MSc (Population Health), PhD Candidate University of Wollongong. More facts about HPV infections and the development of cervical cancer have been published in the Infectious Agents and Cancer Journal and can be accessed here: HPV vaccination programs have not been shown to be cost-effective in countries with comprehensive Pap screening and surgery.

References

Habakus LK and Holland M (Ed), 2011, Vaccine Epidemic: how corporate greed, biased science and coercive government threaten our human rights, our health and our children. Center for Personal Rights.
Rosenthal E, 2008, The Evidence Gap: Drug Makers Push Leads to Cancer Rise, The New York Times, August 20, accessed 21.12.09
Rothman SM and Rothman DJ, 2009, Marketing HPV Vaccine: Implications for Adolescent Health and Medical Professionalism, Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol 302, (7) p. 781 – 785.

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The Gardasil Experience in Denmark: One Family’s Story

by Charlotte Nielsen

Published on January 13, 2014

8792 views

In Denmark, the childhood immunization program has included the HPV-vaccination since 2009. The first injection is given with the third and last “MFR”, (Measles, mumps, rubella). Gardasil is offered for free for girls aged 12. As a “follow up”, young girls have been offered the vaccination for free as well. The plan in Denmark is to expand the standard program by including girls aged 15-18. Many Danish women and even some young boys have received the vaccination by co-payment.

According to Danish health care authorities they received 468 reports about 1022 possible side effects to Gardasil during the period 2009-2012. At that point, 53 cases were classified as “serious” out of which 24 were classified “possible” and 29 “less possible”.

From the period of January 1, 2009 through August 1, 2013, 1,392,101 vaccine doses of Gardasil were sold in Denmark. Since Gardasil comes in a three dose schedule, approximately 460,000 young Danish girls in Denmark may have had the HPV vaccine. During this period was reported 41 suspected serious adverse effects considered as “possible” due to Gardasil.

The latest report from September 26. 2013 describes an increasing number of reported side effects – 281 reports including 1528 side effects, 80 classified “serious”, 17 “possible”, 29 “less possible” and the last 34 not possible to assess primarily due to missing a diagnosis or too little information.

Most reported side effects were syncope or dizziness, headache and general malaise eventually accompanied by “unspecific symptoms”.

The diagnosis of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) has been seen in 4 cases (plus one former case). POTS is suspected to be a new possible side effect to Gardasil by the Danish health authorities, and therefore, the 5 cases were reported to EMA – European Medicine Agency – for further investigation. Unofficially, we have at least 10 cases of POTS as side effect to Gardasil in Denmark now. The next official Gardasil side effect-report will be released to the public late January 2014.

Our Story of Gardasil Injury

Denmark has a population of 5.5 million people. We live in a democracy – our present government consists of three parties ranging from the socialist party, the social democrats to the social liberal party. In Denmark we pay high taxes (normally about 42-50%, top taxes 70%). We have a free health care service to help in any case – or at least we believed so…

About a year ago life changed in our family. Our youngest daughter Sara got her first vaccination by Gardasil in late January 2013.

A few days later she began feeling ill continuously for weeks and after four weeks she had a very high fever and pain in her throat. A few days after that, small red spots appeared on her body. No specific infection could be proved by blood test. She was generally unwell for weeks with a low fever and was on and off school.

Sara had her second vaccination by Gardasil late March 2013. Two days after she fainted in the bathroom. During the following days she felt she could faint again and was feeling very dizzy, she had strong pains in her leg muscles and arms, along with sensory disturbances such as tingling/burning sensations under the feet and in the hands. She was exhausted (could hardly go for a very short walk). Abdominal pains appeared often after a meal. A strong and constant headache developed. She had problems with regulation of temperature. Night sweats. She felt too warm or too cold during the daytime. More symptoms appeared later on.

Sara went to school a few days a week and only a few lessons.

During the last four months she has been at home socially isolated, extremely limited in her daily activities and just recently begun home teaching, two lessons a week. (The law permits 8 lessons at home in the case of long term illness).

Sara has been through an incredible and almost unbearable number of symptoms and exacerbations in recent months.

Before Gardasil, Sara was a healthy 12-year-old girl singing in a choir at the local church, playing the piano and dancing standard-Latin twice a week. Now, in addition to constant headache and muscle pain, dizziness and nausea she has:

Low appetite, difficulties in feeling hunger or satiety, suddenly put on weight during a few weeks and then losing weight.
Muscle power decreased in general. Can only walk 1.3 km slowly and in pain.
Abdominal pains, temperature regulation out of balance (too hot//too cold/night sweats). Sensory disturbances: Tingling, burning, numbness and sleeping limbs. Arms burning/cool inside.
Symptoms from skin, teeth and joints.
Fatigue and very low energy. Even a shower is exhausting.
Problems falling asleep because of pains.
Concentration difficulties, memory problems. Problems finding the words, hard to read (eyes are easily getting tired).

Many of Sara´s symptoms have improved over time, but still most of these side effects are to some degree present.

Diagnosing Post Gardasil Illness

At the beginning we had Sara´s ears and eyes examined by specialists but neither sinusitis or any visual problems or anything else to explain the constant headache were found. Sara was examined at children’s ward at a University Hospital with no results at all. All lab tests, CT and MR-scans were normal. Only “positive result” was low D-vitamin (a relatively normal condition in Denmark). By a general practitioner Sara had tests (via the Danish Serum Institute) for synaptic encephalitis, cerebral vasculitis and neuropathy – all negative. A chiropractic neurologist found her symptoms based in the autonomic nervous system. His exercises (functional therapy) could not change the headache or take away the dizziness – his conclusion was therefore it must be a toxic reaction due to Gardasil.

The children´s ward did not pay much interest in such results. We were met by arrogance and a skeptical attitude both within hospital and general health care system just as many other patients described similar experience on their way through the health system.

In August 2013 we went to a Swiss outpatient clinic that we had heard about accidentally. We stayed two weeks at Paracelsus (www.Paracelsus.ch), Lustmühle, Switzerland. A holistic treatment in a bio-medical Clinic situated in the Swiss Alps.

All treatment is natural if possible, but patients have to prescribe and accept traditional medication, if necessary. Sara got all sorts of treatments at the clinic and back at home supplements, homeopathic medication, nutritive diet; plus sub cutaneous injections of Mistletoe. The diagnosis from Paracelsus is:

Severe toxic reaction after 2nd Gardasil immunization March 26th 2013 initiating fibromyalgia syndrome with acquired mitochondropathy.

In addition, our daughter was diagnosed by a physician at a Danish hospital, (not at children’s ward) as having POTS. POTS was reported to health care authorities as a possible side effect to Gardasil. To help the symptoms of POTS we got some advice from the hospital. Chemical medication is an option but only a treatment of symptoms. The basic damage is treated by Paracelsus, Switzerland which provides the best chances to succeed in a cure of the underlying conditions and injuries.

Working with Researchers and Physicians for Post Gardasil Illness

Unfortunately, it is up to every single family/and patient to decide what treatment to choose (and to pay for). We went to Switzerland and we are seeing a slow but promising recovery and progress. We also stay in contact with researchers abroad. We received the advice indirectly from professor Yehuda Shoenfeld, Israel, to use the treatment Lipid Replacement Therapy recommended by Professor Garth Nicolson, USA. We have given our daughter the “NTFactor ATP” powder for about 4 1/2 months now. The Swiss doctor welcomed this dietary supplement.

Yehuda Shoenfeld, Israel, is a professor and head of Zabludowicz Center for Autoimmune Diseases, Sheba Medical Center (Affiliated to Tel-Aviv University) researching in ASIA, Autoimmune/inflammatory Syndrome induced by adjuvants in vaccines. Working together with Lucija Tomljenovic.Tomljenovic and Shoenfeld have described several cases of adverse side effects connected to Gardasil. Sin Hang Lee told from his research that Gardasil is consisting remains of genetic modified DNA from HPV-virus bound to the adjuvant. He investigated 16 samples of HPV-vaccine doses from 9 different countries.

Shaw and Tomljenovic proved a connection Gardasil/autoimmune vasculitis by post mortem investigating brain tissue specimens of two young girls who suffered a sudden death for no clear reasons – except vaccination by Gardasil. The research showed that the blood-brain barrier was penetrated by HPV-16-L1 antigen from Gardasil. This leading to encephalitic conditions might have caused the death of the two young girls and likely in more cases as well.

Gary Null, PhD and Nancy Ashley VMD wrote “Gardasil – A Deadly Vaccine” mentioning several cases of serious illness and death.

They all have found indices showing a clear connection between Gardasil and serious adverse side effects – even leading to deaths.

The more researchers find out about these connections and causals – the closer medical science might get to find a cure.

This has already partly happened – in Germany two physicians have invented a “nosode” medication (small tablets), to antagonize some of the damage that Gardasil is causing. Until now there have been promising results – but this work has of course not been accepted or respected by health authorities either in Germany or Denmark yet.

Understanding the Side-Effects of Gardasil and Parent Activism in Denmark

When our daughter became ill, I began to research using Google to find out about HPV-vaccination and side effects. In Denmark we had very little knowledge in April 2013.

In Denmark we have one organization dealing with questions referring to vaccinations giving advice to support a free choice based on relevant information. The organization named “www.VaccinationsForum.dk” knew at that time only a few Danish young girls with side effects after the HPV vaccination. Together we found more information and researchers around the world.

A family stepped forward with their 14-year old daughter in the Danish newspaper Politiken, April 2013. Other newspapers made articles as well.

We accepted together with our daughter a short TV interview in September 2013 – and more followed.

A series of articles in Danish newspapers were published over the summer 2013 as well as radio, TV news (we have one national TV station “DR” and one private “TV2”, TV2 has local stations as well) – we saw a veritable media and public “wake up” in Denmark.

The number of victims showing up grew as focus was finally on HPV-vaccination and its side effects. Thirty new cases of severe side effects appeared within two months, then it was 50…Patients and their families simply did not know about the possibility of side effects until then.

We participated as a family at a meeting in September 2013 arranged by patients. We let the media cover the meeting. Everyone reported the long and exhausting process of seeking treatment post – Gardasil injury, often with no diagnosis or relevant treatment offered. Almost all of the Gardasil injured experienced deterioration over time. Several “HPV” groups appeared over summer and fall 2013 in Danish at Facebook – by now there are over 250 cases known in Denmark with adverse side effects. One Facebook group is found by the text: “Til kamp for retfærdig oplysning om HPV” (Fighting for a fair information about HPV-vaccine).

The health authorities do not gladly accept the reported cases as causal to Gardasil. But as mentioned in the introduction we have seen a bigger number of reported side effects since August 2013, probably according to the public interest aroused by parents, patients and the media.

Legislative Hearings on Post Gardasil Injury – A Victory for Parent Activism

Since August 2013, Danish politicians were informed by parents and patients and little by little are getting involved.

On November 7, 2013 there was a political “open hearing” within Danish Government´s Health Committee to discuss the HPV-vaccination and its side effects. More than 70 individuals and families sent their case stories to the politicians. It made a strong impression. Many of us even received answers – some very short and warm, some long and cool.

The Minister of Health Care chose to forward the problem to the “Regions” (Denmark is divided into 5 regions). The main tasks of the regions are: hospital services, mental health and health insurance including private practitioners and specialists.

Many case stories were once again sent – this time to the politicians of the Regions – and finally it seems that the side effect problems post Gardasil are being taken seriously.

The heart-breaking thing is that we might get a “council of experts” in Denmark. There has been a political set up “closed hearing” including five-six professors and physicians from Danish hospitals and one general practitioner. We worry that the “experts” will not have any idea what went wrong with Gardasil and the post Gardasil side-effects. They will not know how to find a cure for or treat the serious illnesses that follow the HPV vaccine. Unless health care authorities and “experts” by a small amount of humility are willing to take a look at researchers around the world and open up their traditional medical minds to all kinds of treatments.

The Danish Society for the prevention of Cancer (Kræftens Bekæmpelse) and Danish health authorities have sort of misunderstood the “discussion” making it a question of pro or contra cervical cancer. Added to that, many people have misunderstood what the HPV-vaccination really is – they are convinced it´s a vaccination against cancer – a laudable hope for humanity but not exactly what Gardasil and Cervarix are. Citizens in Denmark are not informed properly. No warnings about serious side effects have been forwarded from health authorities to practitioners to patient and parents. The media have unveiled physicians in double roles cultivating convenient connections qua their “side jobs” as consultants at medical companies producing and selling Gardasil. These physicians are, for example, employed by the Danish health authorities and there lay our concern regarding the ‘expert’ panels.

More Signs of Progress from Parent Activism against Gardasil

We have succeeded as parents and as a vaccination organization in Denmark to wake up the media, the public and politicians who are now slightly showing some interest in all the side effects caused by Gardasil, the HPV-vaccine. A small amount of money ($46,000 dollars in 2014) has been politically dedicated to investigate HPV-vaccine side effects, inform patients and health care staff and to find out how to examine the patients properly and identify the relevant diagnoses and treatments for post Gardasil injuries.

The first two young girls have now received official insurance according to their serious and disabling side effects after Gardasil, even though these illnesses were not accepted by Health authorities to be more than “possibly” due to side effects. More cases of patient insurance are following in Denmark. Danish health insurance is not depending on the health authorities.

We must keep on the good work and networking which cannot be controlled by powerful authorities or financial interests. We can even exchange information worldwide. Thanks to everyone who is taking part in this backlash against side effects due to HPV-vaccination.

We matter as parents. Researchers all over the world are participating. The medical industry is, of course, soon coming up with new vaccines trying to cover more HPV-types without using the emergency break. Future victims will come without doubt. We must never hesitate to do whatever we can to prevent this disaster to go on.

Charlotte Nielsen, Denmark

Retired occupational therapist and the mother of three.

Update

As of November 30, 2013 Health Authorities have recognized 16 cases of POTS. The number continues to grow.

Participate in Research

Hormones Matter^TM 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.

Hormones Matter^TM conducts other crowdsourced surveys on medication reactions. To take one of our other surveys, click here.

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My Son’s Gardasil Story and Thiamine Deficiency

by Michelle Kozel

Published on October 16, 2013

6137 views

On June 16^th 2012 my son complained of ear pain, so I took him to his doctor thinking he had an ear infection. He had no infection but his doctor suggested doing a physical exam since he had not been in for a couple of years. My son had just turned 18 years old three weeks prior and just graduated from high school. He was happy, healthy, and active. After the exam I was called into the room. His doctor said he was in good health and observed no problems, but since he would be going off to college in the fall, he recommended that he should receive the meningococcal vaccine along with the Gardasil vaccine. In his words, “HPV is rampant in colleges and he should have this vaccine.” This had been my son’s physician since birth, and having no prior knowledge of the Gardasil vaccine controversy, I trusted him and agreed to these two vaccines that day.

There was absolutely no discussion of possible harmful side effects.

My son did not have any immediate reactions that I can remember, but on July 30^th 2012 that all changed. We were out to lunch and when his food arrived he looked at me with a very strange look on his face and said that he just didn’t feel right, something was wrong. He could not eat that day even though he was hungry just prior. He would complain of severe stomach pain that came and went over the next few weeks.

On August 7^th 2012 he received the second dose of Gardasil. His stomach pain increased in severity, but we still did not make the Gardasil connection. Who would think that a vaccine for HPV would cause stomach aches?

Just nine days after that second injection, he felt he needed to go in and see his doctor. The pain was becoming unbearable. The doctor prescribed antacids but this only made his problem worse, so he then suggested an endoscopy. The endoscopy came back completely normal. At this point his doctor felt that his stomach pain was due to stress and anxiety because he was going off to college. The doctor suggested that he should “go talk to someone.” I knew for a fact that the pain was not in his head or simply due to stress. It was real. Now, almost a year later, and with the knowledge of the possible side effects of the Gardasil vaccine, I am very angry that his doctor did not recognize “severe stomach aches” as being one of the Gardasil side effects. How did he not connect those dots, especially given the fact that my son was in his office just nine days after receiving the second dose complaining of that very thing? This recognition would have prevented him from getting that dreadful final dose.

My son left for college and soon after began developing other symptoms, mainly extreme fatigue and brain fog. He made it through the quarter and came home for Winter break. On December 27^th he received the 3^rd and final dose of Gardasil. The very next evening he became extremely sick. All the symptoms he had been experiencing along with many others became instantly worse. I was finally able to make the Gardasil connection. Since then he has had more symptoms than I can list, sinus headaches, pain at the base of his skull, fever, chills, hair loss, vision changes, gallbladder pain/gallstones, sleep disturbances, tingling, numbness, no appetite, weight loss, anxiety, excessive thirst, salt cravings, kidney issues, liver issues, heart palpitations, slow heartbeat, fast heartbeat, dizzy, rashes, mouth sores, yeast issues, low stomach acid… the list goes on. To this day he still suffers from many of these symptoms.

What has followed are many doctors and many, many tests; most of which have come back normal with the exception of his most recent test. After reading Dr. Lonsdale’s article on thiamine deficiency and his recommendation for Gardasil injured to have a red cell transketolase blood test, I immediately requested one for my son. I researched the symptoms of thiamine deficiency and he pretty much had every single one. The test came back strongly positive. He was severely thiamine deficient.

This is where we are today. We started immediate supplementation with oral alliathiamine and we are looking into possible IV supplementation, for perhaps, a quicker, more thorough improvement. I sincerely hope that this discovery might be the key to my son finally being well again and that this devastating nightmare may finally come to an end.

Participate in Research

Hormones Matter^TM 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 (we hope to launch the male version soon), please take this important survey. The Gardasil Cervarix HPV Vaccine Survey.

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