Covid-19 vaccination & Epilepsy

..thanks for input . A phone call to an allergist out of town, he said its the Polyethylene Glycol in eg. the pfizer vaccine and that in fact Clonazepam/Rivotril/Klonopin already has it as an ingredient, but I cant find confirmation (of what he said) on the Internet.
Also that Polyethylene Glycol (I think more than one type) is a kind of laxative they use for colonoscopies.
I should not have looked it up now I am more confused than ever as have IBS, fecal incontinence etc. and they say not to use P.G. if bowel disease etc. Ugh. I also found a foreign article saying not to use an anticonvulsant med with Flu/Covid type vaccines... why do we patients have to search for this info and not get a clear cut correct answer from the medical profession, or is it me???
p.s. I am now wondering if the article I read was dealing with TREATMENT meds with P.G. of those people already with Covid who use anticonvulsants and I thought it meant the actual vaccine, ....but I still cant find that Polyethylene Glycol is an ingredient of Clonazepam as the allergist said to me. So confusing.

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CLONAZEPAM AND COVID VACCINE – INFORMATION WANTED please

Hi I know this isn't correct place to ask but not sure where.
I have put off having Covid vaccine as unwell wont go into details.
There is one of many additional ingredients in Pfizer vaccine called polyethylene glycol which some people have reactions to. I spoke to a dr. over phone at an allergy clinic and he said it should be fine as in fact the Clonazepam I take has polyethylene glycol in its ingredients.

I thought OK, will go ahead, but when checked Internet I read that anyone taking an anti-epileptic med such as CLONAZEPAM (I only have low dose .5 a day for anxiety but for years)…. could get a delayed reaction.

PLEASE.. does anyone know about this. i have so many other issues including P.N., Tinnitus, Ear pain; Glaucoma, etc. etc. that am not sure I can handle a bad reaction.

Or, anyone know where I can find out more correct info as I don't want to put off having vaccine any longer. THANKS much appreciated! *p.s. I do not have seizures but taken it 15 yrs for sleep and/anxiety and the dr just left me on it" now worried to have pfizer vaccine. J.

Good morning Lacy, I'm sorry you are feeling so confused - there is so much information floating around, it is no surprise.

First, Polyethylene Glycol is only an ingredient in liquid versions of Clonazepam, used for IVs. It is used to keep the drug suspended in the liquid, the same as it is in the Pfizer vaccine.

Second, the quantity of Polyethylene Glycol used as a laxative, for colonoscopy prep or as a stool softener is hundreds of times greater than the amount in the tiny syringe that dispenses a vaccine.

Third, the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson vaccine does not contain Polyehtylene Glycol.

Finally, as I always do when these questions arise, I dove into the numbers. Here is the data from VAERS, where all physicians and medical facilities are required to report serious events - hospitalization, ER visit, life threatening reaction or death. (https://wonder.cdc.gov/vaers.html) The data covers entire period of Covid vaccination from testing to current, about 11-12 months.

To date, 333,000,000 doses of vaccine have been administered in the US to about 184,000,000 people and 413,000 adverse events have been reported. That amount to 124 events for every 100,000 shots (.00124%.) There were 5200 deaths reported, or 1.6 per 100,000 (.0000157%)

There are about 3.4 million in the US with epilepsy, roughly 1% of the population or 1000 per 100,000 people and about 3000 deaths or 88/100,000 people with epilepsy (.00088%). There is no medical or scientific literature suggesting people with epilepsy not be vaccinated.

In VAERS there were 374 reports of seizures, and 6 reported deaths - about 1 in a million, or ten in 10,0000 of people with epilepsy - this is not proof that the vaccine caused the death, only that the person was recently vaccinated. It is unknown how many of these people reported epilepsy as an underlying condition at the time of vaccination or in VAERS.

In contrast, here are the stats for Covid cases and deaths:
- 34 million cases of Covid in the US - one in every 10 of the total population, so changes of contracting Covid are 10,000 per 100,000.
- 600,000 deaths - If you get Covid, your chance of death is 1700/100,000 (.01764%). Since you have a 10% chance of contracting Covid, that means you have a chance of death of 177/100,000 (.001764%)
- In other words, 5.5 times more people have had the vaccine than had Covid, but 115 times more people have died from Covid than from the vaccine.

Vaccines are being shown to be nearly 90% effective against contracting Covid, and nearly 100% effective against getting severe Covid or dying. That is among the highest vaccine effectiveness for illnesses like influenza, shingles, herpes, etc.

Here is my takeaway:
I have underlying conditions. That means my risk of severe illness or death is higher than average.
I knew I would experience a reaction - my immune system goes into overdrive from every vaccine - but I chose to get it anyway, and I dealt with the extreme inflammatory flare, which was definitely unpleasant.
So I trade a risk of adverse reaction (124/100,000) or death (1.6/100,000) to the vaccine over the chance of contracting Covid (10,000/100,000) or dying from it (177/100,000.)

In addition, being vaccinated protects those in my circle - young children especially - and limits the hosts for spreading the disease.

I know this is a frightening and emotional issue for many people, but I believe that the numbers are now here to assure us that, absent a very rare condition, it is safe to be vaccinated.

Sue

If worried about Pfizer, get Moderna. I have had many of the issues you listed and didn’t experience much trouble…..maybe a bit more tinnitus….but that was all after Moderna.

Jake- You are correct that everybody's reaction to Covid vaccines is different. However, there is no indication at this time that epilepsy and covid vaccines kill people.

Should those with seizures triggered by fever avoid getting the COVID vaccine?

Elevated temperature (fever) is a common side effect after getting a vaccine. Fevers have been reported as a side effect after getting the COVID vaccine because the immune system is reacting to create immunity in the body. Some people with epilepsy have seizures that are triggered by fever. However, the available data about the risks of COVID and the safety of the COVID vaccines still support vaccination. If you or your loved one have seizures triggered by fever, please talk to your health care provider about:

The specific benefits and risks of the COVID vaccine for you or your loved one
Recommendations about where you or your loved one receive the vaccine, such as a location where medical staff are available
A Seizure Action Plan that includes consideration of rescue therapies
https://www.epilepsy.com/learn/covid-19-and-epilepsy/covid-19-vaccination
What was the actual cause of death for all the people who you say have died as a result of the covid-19 vaccine?

@basslakebabe19 ....and I have tinnitus and eustachian tube pain every day already: not complaining (well maybe a bit) but with glaucoma and other things I get feeling sorry for myself, but more than that I get "scared" and dont want to get any more to deal with, but we don't seem to have a choice do we? As I say and probably others feel this way, at my age and after all I have accomplished (normal stuff) over my life its very disheartening and depressing not to be able to cope.... J.

I would like to talk about my Mom for a minute. She passed away 10 years ago at age 84 after 6 years of declining health, and a lifetime of serious illnesses and diseases - lung, heart, eye, rheumatoid arthritis... - and 13 years as a widow.
She explained to me that as her life changed, and her health declined, that she viewed her life in chapters, closed each chapter in its time and moved on. Some chapters: raised a big family, retired and travelled with my Dad, danced and danced, spent winters in Texas for 25 years - 3 couples, 2 1/2 couples, 3 sisters and one brother-in-law, 2 sisters. Giving up her car, using a walker, then a scooter to get around, moving from big family home, to smaller house, to mobile home, to independent apartment, to assisted living, to hospice...

She explained to me that each old chapter was sad to close, each new chapter was scary to open, but also offered something new. Our adventures got smaller with each chapter - from climbing a mountain to see the Monarchs and whitewater rafting with grandkids, to visiting her childhood home in Iowa, to going to an old favorite restaurant for lunch or dinner, to learning to watercolor and having her painting in an exhibition, to having take-out Chinese with a grandchild.

I have often thought about her "chapters" as my life and health take unexpected turns. I pray I will find the grace and strength to accept and embrace the new chapters in my life as I age. Perhaps this is an exercise to try instead of focusing on losses?

Sue

I would like to talk about my Mom for a minute. She passed away 10 years ago at age 84 after 6 years of declining health, and a lifetime of serious illnesses and diseases - lung, heart, eye, rheumatoid arthritis... - and 13 years as a widow.
She explained to me that as her life changed, and her health declined, that she viewed her life in chapters, closed each chapter in its time and moved on. Some chapters: raised a big family, retired and travelled with my Dad, danced and danced, spent winters in Texas for 25 years - 3 couples, 2 1/2 couples, 3 sisters and one brother-in-law, 2 sisters. Giving up her car, using a walker, then a scooter to get around, moving from big family home, to smaller house, to mobile home, to independent apartment, to assisted living, to hospice...

She explained to me that each old chapter was sad to close, each new chapter was scary to open, but also offered something new. Our adventures got smaller with each chapter - from climbing a mountain to see the Monarchs and whitewater rafting with grandkids, to visiting her childhood home in Iowa, to going to an old favorite restaurant for lunch or dinner, to learning to watercolor and having her painting in an exhibition, to having take-out Chinese with a grandchild.

I have often thought about her "chapters" as my life and health take unexpected turns. I pray I will find the grace and strength to accept and embrace the new chapters in my life as I age. Perhaps this is an exercise to try instead of focusing on losses?

Sue