Former anti-vaxxer pleads with Quebecers to get vaccinated after almost losing daughter to virus
A former anti-vaxxer in Quebec is pleading with others to get vaccinated after she nearly lost her daughter to the virus.
Sophie Leger lives with her family of eight in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Que. Her 21-year-old daughter, Melodie, used to be against the vaccine, before she caught COVID-19 last month.
Leger remembers the early symptoms.
“Her back hurt … her head hurt … she couldn’t move,” she said.
Melodie's condition got worse. She ended up at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal by late September, where she fell into a coma.
“The diagnosis was simple,” said her mother. “Melodie must have died.”
Doctors didn't think she'd make it. Melodie was intubated, breathing with the help of a respirator. Leger says her heart actually stopped three times.
“We are talking about three weeks,” said Leger. “Three weeks of paralysis … three weeks of intubation [and] strong drugs.”
For those three weeks, Melodie remained in a coma, until she recovered -- something leger described as nothing short of a miracle.
MELODIE’S RETURN
Melodie finally returned home Sunday while her mother was still in conversation with CTV News.
“Oh mon Dieu!” exclaimed Leger, as she heard her daughter enter the apartment.
- Watch CTV’s Billy Shields’ report above to see Leger’s reaction the moment her daughter returned from the hospital
Upon her return, Melodie said her time in hospital had changed “everything.”
“My whole life and perspective changed completely,” she said, adding that she plans on getting the vaccine as soon as she can.
Her mother says misinformation online contributed to her hesitancy to get the shot before getting sick.
She called that misinformation “dangerous for mankind.”
“Now I have a big mission,” she said. “To make people aware of the importance of the vaccine.”
A majority of recent COVID-19 cases reported in Quebec have been found among those who had gotten their first dose of a vaccine less than two weeks prior, or never got a shot at all.
On Sunday, 341 of the 532 cases were found among that group. Public health says unvaccinated people are 22.8 times more likely to be hospitalized after catching COVID-19.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
Quebec Health Department reports 28 cases of eye damage linked to solar eclipse
Quebec's Health Department says it has received 28 reports of eye damage related to the April 8 total solar eclipse that passed over southern parts of the province.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.