Mr. Matthew Erickson falls into a relatively uncommon category on The COVID Blog™. He is not a vaxx zealot. Like Ms. Jessica Turner, Mr. David Menchinton, Mr. James Cooper Sawyer, et al., Mr. Erickson is a self-identified Republican and/or conservative. He loves Donald Trump and very much dislikes Joe Biden. Mr. Erickson is a Christian and, according to his Facebook page, attended a Bible college called Christ for the Nations, Inc. (CFNI). He is also very close to his father, who suffered a stroke sometime in 2016. The two do almost everything together since Mr. Erickson has been his father’s primary caretaker since the stroke.
Mr. Erickson is anti-mask and against vaccine mandates. He praised Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers for avoiding the injections, while acknowledging the effectiveness of natural immunity against so-called COVID-19.
Mr. Erickson, in April 2021, wondered why people still had to wear masks in public places even after receiving the magic vaccines.
He also criticized Pfizer in September 2021 for, ironically, manufacturing a “vaccine” that causes blood clots, while also manufacturing drugs to treat blood clots.
But ultimately, Mr. Erickson loves traveling internationally, and loves going to concerts and sporting events. He and his father traveled to the Bahamas in August 2021. Based on all the clues we could piece together from his Facebook page, Mr. Erickson received a Johnson & Johnson viral vector DNA injection in July or August 2021. His stroke-victim father also received the injection.
Mr. Erickson and his father kicked off a trip across Europe on April 18, 2022. It started in the Azores Islands (Portugal), followed by Spain, France, Italy and Greece. They reached Istanbul, Turkey on May 7. But Mr. Erickson wrote on that day, “my legs are killing me.” He described perpetual cramps in his legs that Turkish doctors said might be blood clots.
The next day, on May 8, Mr. Erickson shared a photo of himself in a hospital. He wrote that doctors may have to do a “surgical procedure” on his legs.
Mr. Erickson went under the knife a few hours later and talked more about how he went from just having sore legs to getting blood clots removed. Doctors told him that the situation almost required partial or full amputation of his leg and/or foot.
The next day, May 9, Mr. Erickson shared graphic photos of the blood clots that were removed from his leg, including one that was 10 centimeters (four inches) long.
One month later, and back in the United States, Mr. Erickson looked back on the incident. He knows that he’s lucky to be alive and to still have all of his limbs intact. Mr. Erickson also said the cause of the blood clots is “pointing directly at the J&J COVID Vaccine.”
Mr. Erickson appears to be on the mend. He’s since posted photos of himself hiking, attending concerts and at a family reunion. We’ll provide updates in due course.