Before Tyler Blaylock died of COVID-19, his mom said he wished he had been vaccinated against the coronavirus. Tyler’s family wishes that, too.
He died following his bout with COVID-19 on Sept. 16 at the University of Kansas Health System - St. Francis Campus in Topeka, Kansas.
Tyler tested positive for coronavirus on Aug. 16, WIBW reported. And in just five days, Tyler was struggling to breath.
“It went so fast, it was like a tornado,” his mom, Kayla, told the station.
In an email to McClatchy News, Kayla said in the beginning and because of Tyler’s allergies, it was recommended that he not get the shot.
Kayla told Tyler’s story on public Facebook posts.
“All I can do is share our story and heartbreak,” she wrote. “I don’t know if having the vaccine would or would not have saved Tyler’s life but I promise you if I had it to do over he would have been vaccinated.”
She wrote that she was dismayed by a doctor’s comments about her son wishing he’d gotten vaccinated, and responded by saying, “Of course he wished that, we all do. But what good comes out of saying that to a 20 year old kid.”
The Topeka 20-year-old was a “beloved son, brother, teammate, and friend,” and now his family has established the Tyler Blaylock Foundation in hopes of saving the lives of others , and to remind parents to be an advocate for their child’s heath.
“I just want everyone to get Vaccinated,” Kayla wrote on Facebook.
His parents also had COVID-19 and Kayla had to be hospitalized, WIBW reported, and they were not vaccinated at the time.
“All the whys and the would’ve, could’ve, should’ve. There’s guilt. There’s guilt from everybody. You feel like you did not protect your child,” Kayla told WIBW.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Health professionals have given over 396 million doses of three different brands between Dec. 14 and Oct. 4.
The Pfizer vaccine is the only COVID-19 shot that has full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, though Moderna and Johnson and Johnson vaccines have emergency use authorization.
“I have cried so much today and I am absolutely overwhelmed by all the people that have reached out and been vaccinated because of Tyler’s story,” Kayla shared four days after her child’s death. “I can’t begin to tell you how happy it makes us. I am not the vaccine police by no means nor have I even had the flu shot. After seeing everything on the TV and in the news I see why people are so scared and don’t know what to do or Believe.”
Tyler’s sister, Sydney, is also advocating for her high school classmates to get vaccinated.
“I wouldn’t want anyone to go through what I went with losing my brother — literally sitting by him in the hospital and watching him take his last breath,” she told WIBW. “You never know — and you can take the chance on getting the vaccine, and actually living and protecting yourself.”
His mom, both angry and heartbroken, also wants to remind people that while the vaccine is considered experimental in many people’s eyes, it is a better alternative to the treatment received in a hospital. She says they experienced confusion over treatment and separation from their son, causing COVID separation anxiety.
“Everything moves so fast and all you hear is I don’t know what to do from some doctors and when you ask them to try certain drugs or other options they tell you they don’t believe it will make a difference,” she said.
Tyler was a 2019 graduate of Silver Lake High School and attended Mid America Nazarene University and Johnson County Community College following his high school graduation, according to his obituary. He was an athlete who loved to play baseball, spend time with his family and compete in video game tournaments.
“Tyler has inspired so many young people to get vaccinated during his battle with Covid,” his obituary says. “He has continued and will continue to touch many lives.”
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