Catt Sadler/Instagram Catt Sadler
Catt Sadler is urging people not to “let your guard down” after she contracted COVID-19 while fully vaccinated against the virus.
The entertainment reporter, 46, said she contracted COVID-19 after caring for an unvaccinated person with the virus whom they initially thought just had the flu.
“I assumed I would be fine,” Sadler wrote on Instagram. “Well I’m not.”
Sadler said she’s at home, dealing with intense symptoms.
“Two days of a fever now. Head throbbing. Extreme congestion. Even some weird puss coming out of my eye. Serious fatigue; no energy to even leave the bed,” she said.
Though developing COVID-19 after getting fully vaccinated is rare, it is possible and “expected,” the Centers for Disease Control say, as the vaccines are not 100% effective against the virus. Those cases — called breakthrough infections — are typically asymptomatic, and fully vaccinated people are much better protected against severe illness from COVID-19 that could lead to hospitalization or death. Only a tiny fraction of fully vaccinated people, around 0.00003%, have been hospitalized with COVID-19, according to the CDC.
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Sadler said that her case is from the faster-spreading Delta variant that has become the dominant strain in the U.S.
“Delta is relentless and highly contagious and grabbed ahold of me even after getting vaccinated,” she said.
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Sadler urged people to continue wearing a mask.
“If you are not vaccinated and not wearing a mask, I assure you you don’t want to feel like this and not only are you bound to get sick eventually you’ll be spreading it to others,” she said. “If you are vaccinated, don’t let your guard down. If you’re in crowds or indoors in public I highly recommend taking the extra precaution of wearing a mask.”
“I’m telling you this so that you understand that the pandemic is very much NOT over,” she explained.