This video is of my son getting his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Please continue reading (under the video) for my family’s considerations related to the vaccine. Thanks for being here.
For those new to this website:
Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission) to test consumer goods for toxicants (specifically heavy metals — including Lead, Cadmium, Mercury, Antimony, and Arsenic). Tamara’s work was featured in Consumer Reports Magazine in February 2023 (March 2023 print edition).
For Mother’s Day, my 18-year-old got his first COVID-19 vaccine shot. Read all our considerations below.
My family has a lot of considerations around this vaccine — with different reasons for each family member — but first: “Tamara, why are you sharing about this on your website?”
I decided to share about our choices around this particular vaccine because I have had so much interest, many inquiries, and questions! As a bit of a public figure — not a “celebrity,” per se, but my kids (three of whom are jazz musicians) always say I am “Jazz famous,” (by which they mean well-known among a specific group of followers with shared interests, and a few random other folks! Lol!) — I also feel that in this time of vaccine hesitancy during a pandemic, which has impacted every one of us, there is a degree of civic responsibility in being open about these choices and inviting conversation. Before I get into the details about the various choices for each of my family members, I want to also CLEARLY STATE that there is NO HEAVY METAL CONCERN with the COVID-19 vaccines! Period.
My husband: Age 62 — Fully Vaccinated
Within our nuclear family of six (me + hubs + four sons), my husband decided to get vaccinated first (back in March — you may remember the controversy on my Facebook page!). He was the “guinea pig” for our family, to some degree. At 62 years old, he is also old enough to be considered “at risk” just due to his age — although he is arguably one of the more healthy members of our little family. He had no specific risk factors that gave us any cause for concern, (other than mild asthma — with only a handful of serious episodes over the years usually after sustained, very heavy exertion, which have always quickly resolved, and never required that he regularly take medication) and it has been our focus to protect our younger kiddos who do. So his vaccination was more to protect them than to protect him. After quite a bit of research (months!), hubs went with the Pfizer vaccine — as he was most confident about that choice for multiple reasons.
My eldest son: Age 24 — Fully Vaccinated
Colescott is probably the healthiest member of the family (although really, all of our sons do a good job of staying healthy, making conscious and responsible dietary choices, and keeping fit!). He is a performing professional musician, and frequently needs to be in the company of others WITHOUT a mask for work (mostly because he plays horns, including tuba and trombone — and, to a lesser degree, because he sings). Getting the COVID-19 vaccine was therefore a professional consideration for him (and a choice he made on his own, as he is an adult). He is also dating/ living-with a nurse — so they felt the best choice for both of them was to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
My second son: Age 18 — “Half” Vaccinated (as of today!)
We have had quite a bit of concern about A.J. getting vaccinated. He had received scheduled vaccines (but “spaced out”) until age 3 — when he was acutely Lead poisoned (in August of 2005), and subsequently started having really scary physiological reactions to many kinds of things — including vaccinations (likely as a direct result of his Lead exposure).
Since then he has had only one other vaccine (a tetanus vaccine was required for summer camp when he was 10 years old). Since his Lead poisoning, he has suffered quite a few episodes of potentially life-threatening anaphylactic reactions (extreme swelling in response to systemic toxicant exposures). These reactions have included extreme adverse reactions to mosquito bites, bee stings, and ingesting anything with red dye. He doesn’t always have a reaction — but when he does, he often needs emergency medical intervention; he is also more likely to experience hives (all over his body) in response to a stimulus when he is already sick (like if he gets stung by a bee when he already has a cold, and his immune system is already fighting something off) — but it is unpredictable.
Given the stated concerns for this group of people (those who have specifically experienced anaphylactic reactions) in getting the vaccine (a concern even mentioned in the most recent John Oliver video below) — we wanted to wait as long as possible before he got his first shot, so we had more data points to look to that would help us make this decision. We also did not want to risk A.J. having any kind of reaction to the vaccine during finals week (he just finished his first year of college!). And, finally, we needed to make sure he went with a buddy (in case of an adverse reaction) and that he had his EpiPen handy (as well as setting the time aside to sit at the vaccine center for 30 minutes, and make sure he was not experiencing a reaction, before heading home).
Continue reading below the video!
Today was a good day for him to go ahead with this, as he just finished finals this past week; his roomie accompanied him; and (as you can see if you watch the video above with the sound on) he brought his Epipen with him. Having the vaccine also immediately brought him peace of mind — as he will likely need to be vaccinated to start his second year of college (which will coincide with a return to in-person classes at Berklee) in the Fall. Given he, like Colescott, is also a busy professional musician, in addition to being in many bands and ensembles in music school (and he lives with 3 other roomies), he felt the list of reasons for him to get the vaccine (even with the concerns for a possible reaction) was pretty compelling.
We intend to be very cautious around his second dose as well, because as we understand it — and as my husband experienced — the body’s immune reaction to the second dose can often be significantly greater (and therefore potentially more problematic for a kiddo with a history of potentially life-threatening anaphylactic reactions). I will let you know how that goes. (BTW: A.J. also got the Pfizer vaccine for his first dose.)
My third son: Age 16 — Not Yet Vaccinated
While Avi technically just became eligible to get the vaccine (since he is 16 years old) we are still waiting for some additional information from his doctors before we go ahead with his vaccination. Avi is a serious “science geek”, and has done a LOT of research on his own — and desperately wants to get vaccinated. And since he is choosing that (after having given it much thought, and weighed the risks and benefits of his own), we want to respect that choice. He also has severe OCD (common in kiddos with Lead exposure) — so getting the vaccine will give him peace of mind that will help calm down his constant anxiety and trauma around his exaggerated perceived risk of exposure (he religiously wears a mask — even when he is exclusively outdoors and unlikely to encounter more than an occasional, masked passerby in our quiet neighborhood — whereupon he quickly crosses the street; and he has refused to enter any building since the beginning of the pandemic).
The complication for Avi comes with the fact that he is normally on an injectable biologic medication that shuts off his immune system entirely — to make his severe plaque psoriasis bearable. Plaque psoriasis is the result of what can be described as an “overactive” immune system; his body fights hard against stimuli that other people’s bodies might ignore or might have only a mild reaction to.
We have not yet been able to get a straight answer from either his pediatrician or his dermatologist as to whether he would have potentially serious negative impacts (or alternately, potentially receive no benefit at all) from getting the vaccine (depending on the timing with his next biologic injection). The lines of reasoning/ unanswered questions (if you are a medical expert with specific relevant specialized knowledge that provides a definitive answer to / insight into any of the following questions, please do let us know!):
- If his biologic injections turn off his immune system, does that mean that even if he gets the vaccine, the vaccine may confer no significant or lasting benefit once he gets his next biologic injection? Arguing against getting the vaccine?
- If his immune system is “turned off” by the injection, does that mean he is less likely to have significant reactions to the vaccine (because his immune system won’t react). Or more likely? (Because he has no immune system.)
- Does his unusual medical profile increase his risk of contracting the virus – and/or possibly experiencing more severe complications – and thus argue strongly for vaccination, despite the other considerations?
My fourth son: Age 12 — Not yet Vaccinated
At present, we are not planning on getting Charlie vaccinated. If we need to get him vaccinated to travel abroad (possibly as soon as later this summer) then we will make that choice at that time. Charlie has severe reactive airway disease (situational asthma) and is very high risk when it comes to COVID-19 (which is one of the reasons we have been so careful this year… our friends have said that — even with the travel we have done over the past year — we are among the most isolated people they know, with the smallest “bubble!”).
Me: Age 51 — Not yet Vaccinated
I’m “at-risk” because I am both older and obese (largely due to the metabolic consequence of having a destroyed thyroid gland). Since I shattered my leg this past January, I have also been involuntarily pretty sedentary — because of chronic extreme pain and swelling and severely constrained mobility for the last several months, and have also been diagnosed with blood clots — likely caused by the extensive surgery on my leg (with ultrasounds done in both January and March and a course of blood thinners in between — which was NOT fun!). Given I am already within the demographic of people who might suffer complications from blood clots as a result of getting the vaccine (even though that is a very minor risk, statistically) and considering I currently ALREADY have been diagnosed with blood clots, I have chosen to wait for me to get the vaccine. (I am supposed to have my next follow-up visit with the surgeon regarding my leg in mid-July, and I will be requesting a follow-up evaluation of my blood clots at that time.) I am taking some natural blood thinners (and focusing on a diet that helps with that, as well) in the meantime. I fully understand that the likelihood of additional blood clots may be slim, BUT I also am more comfortable waiting.
My mobility is now finally steadily improving, and I may be traveling to Europe for work this summer (with the kids), and if that ends up coming together, I will likely get the vaccine in time for that travel, if it is required for travel. [But am otherwise waiting for the blood clot issues with my leg to resolve.]
~ That’s it! ~
As always, thank you for reading and for sharing these articles. Please keep comments civil. I will be happy to answer any questions you have that you don’t feel are answered by this piece!
Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama
Rita Gergely says
Here are links to some information that msy help you:
https://creakyjoints.org/living-with-arthritis/psoriatic-arthritis-covid-19-vaccine/#:~:text=However%2C%20none%20of%20the%20COVID,those%20who%20take%20immunosuppressant%20medication
https://www.psoriasis.org/covid-19-task-force-guidance-statements/
Hope says
Thank you for your thoughtful sharing, as always
Tamara says
Thank you for commenting!
Rita Gergely says
Hope thst some of the information helps. It sounds like the risk of NOT getting the vaccine are higher than the risk of getting it, but only you csn make that decision. Let me know if you want me to do some more research because that’s what I do. You can slways email me directly. I’m sure that YOU can see my email. If you can’t, i will email you so that you have it.
Laura says
Thank you for your detailed post. When you said your husband did a ton of research and decided to get it to protect your family and others, I find that conflicting if he thoroughly read that getting the vax only really protects the receiver. It is stated by the manufacturers of any vax that transmission and spread is always possible and it only protects the person who received the vax from mild symptoms. Why would he say that he got it to protect others when it really only protects the person who received it from symptoms?
Seamus English says
Hi
I dont mean disrespect but i find your comments troubling. As a leader of the Family i believe more research should have been done by you and possibly your husband . Children have practically Zero risk of Death from Covid and also Fifty something year olds who are relatively healthy similarly extremely low risk . Vaccination as an earlier post mentioned does not prevent infection or transmission , rather it prevents the severe effects and most likely prevents death . Vaccination carries risk and side effects and potential unknown long term affects . The covid vaccines are ALL unapproved , and will not be approved until 2023 at the earliest when clinical trial complete .In the meantime all countries operate either Emergency or temporary authorizations pending full approval . Why not wait longer .
Your 16 year old “desperately needs the vaccine”. I would respectfully suggest that the vaccine does not cure OCD. My advice would be to offer him a placebo . He has no risk of death and should NOT be vaccinated. My heart goes out to you . If my children were living in terror like he is I would not sleep at night , but I would try to convince him of the truth about the pandemic and the truly minimal risk that exists, especially to all those younger and healthier . Im surprised that someone with a very valid and understandable crusade against the Ill health effects of lead in cookware etc would allow her family to be injected with an unapproved vaccine that contains toxins such as aluminum, PEG and a host of other chemicals and salts, adjuvents etc. I only say the above because I would want it said to me. Please dont get yourself or your remaining Kids vaccinated .
Best wishes
SE
Arlo says
What a weird comment. Lie to your child and give him a placebo? Not only is this unethical but it could be deadly.
A John says
This is not a vaccine. This is a experimental injection being used against humanity as a part of a depopulation agenda. Have you done the research on the ingredients in this injection? Such as SM-102 in the Moderna? Have you looked at the VAERS website (tracked and monitored by the CDC) at the 24,000 deaths that have been reported just in the US! And VAERS is historically noted to only report 1-10% of cases…
We are at war. This injection is Crimes Against Humanity. I strongly encourage you to not inject yourself or your other two boys or at least wait until the trials are over in 2024.
There is a BIG agenda here. How many followers did you lose on IG the day you posted at the ‘vaccine’? I can promise you that these people aren’t just ‘anti vaxers’, they are people who are AWAKE to the evil plot here. The truth and the doctors speaking out to bring truth on these lethal injections, are being scrubbed and censored. You will soon see truth about this injection so you better ensure your feet are on some solid ground with Jesus for the sake and support of your family.
I pray for your families health and that you find strength and clarity in the very tough times ahead.
Tamara says
I actually didn’t loose a “net” of any followers. I had just gained a bunch of new followers that day and then they left when they took the time to learn about the fact that I stand for Medical Freedom (freedom of choice in all things medical.) People have different opinions. I try to stick with science and research and avoid opinions in my work whenever possible.
T
Roxanne says
Here we are 2 years later and all the terrible side effects from pfizers own studies (8 pages single spaced), people dying, and all the doctors coming out and being silenced…my grandmother went into a coma after her first, I know people personally who had family members die or now have some major life altering effect, healthy athletes dropping dead from all of a sudden heart issues, the list of craziness is soooo long, many people who were pro vax before are now aware of the lies pushed by big pharma and the corrupt government and are now anti vaxers since this BS ‘vax’ took place.
Thankful I avoided this experiment!