Becoming pregnant during the COVID-19 pandemic was not what Cianna Persaud had in mind.
After discovering that she was expecting, Persaud, the 35-year-old Radio Coordinator at Radio Bartica 95.1FM, also made a decision to take the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
For the Bartica, Region Seven resident, it was not an easy decision in light of the fact that she suffers from asthma and is allergic to a variety of medication, including antibiotics. Nevertheless, Persaud, who is Catholic, was convinced that the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine was God’s way of providing a solution for people to protect themselves against the coronavirus, which has already taken many lives.
“I took it when I was seven months’ pregnant and throughout the entire time I was taking every precaution possible because I was worried. What happened is that I did my research — like everybody is doing right now — and weighed the pros and cons…I was waiting on the Pfizer because I was looking at the trials, but then I read that AstraZeneca had also been used among pregnant persons,” she said.
The mother of three says her decision to take the vaccine was further influenced by the increasing number of COVID-19 cases being transferred from hinterland communities to the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara. This, she says, prompted her to take action to protect herself and baby.
She believes that her decision to take the vaccine might have played a role in helping her to remain healthy during the pregnancy, and subsequently giving birth to a healthy baby girl, four weeks ago, at the Bartica Regional Hospital.
“This pregnancy was by far the easiest pregnancy I’ve ever done. Both of my previous pregnancies I had risk factors,” Persaud, who faced challenges during the pregnancies leading up to the birth of her two sons. “With this one, I went to the hospital two weeks before the due date. The nurses there were awesome. I went in with my contractions about 9.30 pm and about 4.30 am the next morning I had already delivered. There is actually a photograph that the doctor took after I came out. I sent it to my sister and she was telling me I was glowing after pregnancy. I didn’t have the tired look. I was rejuvenated and happy,” she elaborated.
Like many, Persaud did not experience any severe side effect after taking the COVID-19 vaccine during her pregnancy. Reflecting, she says “with the first dose, I didn’t feel anything, it was like normal, but the second dose, I had a little fever that night, but the next day I was fine.” Arguments about vaccines have the potential to fracture families, causing tension and resentment but this was not the case with Persaud’s family as her entire household made a decision to get vaccinated after learning about her pregnancy, in order to ensure everyone was protected.
“When you’re pregnant, everybody wants to help. Everybody wants to be around. The whole family got their vaccines…even though they have underlying conditions, one of my uncles is diabetic, he is 59 years old; he got his vaccine. My 77-year-old grandmother is hypertensive, she got her vaccine. My father, 57, is suffering from gallstones and he has to do surgery; he took his vaccine. They all did it and nothing happened to them,” she noted.
Persaud’s fear of contracting COVID-19 and putting her child at risk was worse than the unknowns of the vaccine. She said the vaccine had no negative impact on the baby. “She’s breastfeeding and adjusting well,” Persaud added.
Persaud is encouraging pregnant women who are afraid to take the COVID-19 vaccines to review the information provided by the Ministry of Health (MoH), the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO) and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), then examine the current COVID situation locally and abroad and proceed to make their decision.
“I would never try to force somebody to try to do something that they don’t feel ready for but my experience is very good with the vaccine. I never had any adverse effects besides fever with the second dose. Vaccines have been tried, tested and proven, and my option was to ensure that my child has the best start,” she said.
Persaud is pleading with her fellow Guyanese to protect themselves from the deadly virus. Being a social person, she is anxiously looking forward to having the country return to a state of normalcy. The Bartica resident, who has been a volunteer with Red Thread, the Guyana Red Cross Society, the Peace Corps, and the Tourism Committee in the region, says the pandemic has restricted her ability to engage in the community-oriented activities that often allow her to help persons in need.
“I know that it’s not easy having to grapple with the pandemic, and so many things are alien to what we’re accustomed to. I’m a big hugger, I like going out to various activities, I really enjoy meeting people and now with the pandemic, it’s a completely different way of life so I would just like to encourage everyone to continue to follow the COVID-19 guidelines,” she pointed out.
Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony has been continuously calling on pregnant and breastfeeding women get vaccinated against COVID-19 and the MoH has recently made Pfizer vaccines available to them.
Recently, Anthony pointed out that the benefits of taking the vaccines far surpass the side effects. “Among the obstetricians globally, the advice is that you should get your vaccines during pregnancy. The earlier you get it you are going to be protected during pregnancy. Women can become more vulnerable to COVID and, therefore, these vaccines can be very, very protective,” he said.
“When the baby is born, and you’re breastfeeding the antibodies that your body would have produced would also pass through the breast milk so that the baby would have some form of immunity as well,” he further said.
Meanwhile, the US CDC says that although the overall risk of severe illness is low, recently pregnant people are at an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 compared with non-pregnant people. According to the CDC, these require hospitalization, intensive care, need for a ventilator or special equipment to breathe, or results in death. Additionally, it stresses that pregnant people with COVID-19 are at increased risk of preterm birth and might be at increased risk of other adverse pregnancy outcomes, compared with pregnant people without COVID-19.
Evidence about the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy, although limited, has been growing and the CDC suggests that the benefits of receiving a COVID-19 vaccine outweigh any known or potential risks of vaccination during pregnancy. Recent reports have shown that breastfeeding people who have received mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have antibodies in their breastmilk, which could help protect their babies. However, the CDC says more data are needed to determine what level of protection these antibodies may provide to the baby. (Onicka Jones)
