An Alaska woman says she tested positive for COVID-19 after being completely vaccinated – and after contracting the virus before getting a jab.
Kim Akers, of Palmer, said she was stunned to become infected for a second time with a symptomatic case of COVID-19, a few weeks after receiving the Johnson & Johnson shot in early March, reports the Anchorage Daily News.
“Just because you had Covid or were fully vaccinated does not mean you can not test positive,” she wrote on Facebook.
Akers first came across the virus in December when she began to experience an extremely intense headache and cold.
Despite her recent infection, Akers said she wants to be as safe as possible and should get the vaccine as she has an underlying health condition.
Experts believe that vaccines offer more protection than natural immunity – and it is also unclear how long antibodies to infection last.
Akers received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson jab on March 5, but later that month she went to Lake Louise with family and friends over the weekend.
This is where she experiences fatigue, nausea and congestion of the breast.
“I still did not believe anything was wrong,” Akers told the newspaper. “I told my family I wanted to go home. “Don’t worry – it’s not COVID.” I said that. ‘
But when she returned home, other symptoms appeared.
“I did not believe at that moment that it was only when I came home and thought about my symptoms and realized that I remember having a headache,” she said. “Then I lost my taste and my smell.”
Her results came back on March 29 that she tested positive for the virus, Akers said.
She said she has now mostly recovered from a constant headache after three grueling days.
Akers said she shares her story to warn others that they are still at risk, even if they have been vaccinated and contracted the virus.
“It would be great if it protected you completely,” she said, adding that the vaccination is meant to keep you out of the hospital and prevent death and hopefully reduce your symptoms. ‘
Experts have warned that so-called ‘breakthrough’ cases are possible, but rare, as all three vaccines on the market are very effective. However, they do not guarantee 100 percent protection.
The Post reports that a man in New Jersey was admitted to the hospital with the virus and that a woman from Brooklyn tested positive after each received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.