A Quadriplegic’s Experience With Breakthrough COVID-19


Kary Wright and his wife, Terry

As a quadriplegic with weak lung power, the thought of getting COVID-19 is frightening. My wife, Terry, and I have been cautious and as soon as the vaccines became available, we both got vaccinated. After the second vaccine I felt much safer, and I wasn’t thinking about the pandemic so much anymore. Then a few weeks ago, my wife contracted COVID-19 while visiting her dad in hospice.  

Initially we thought it was just a cold, and I was exposed to sneezing and coughing, including while in confined areas such as vehicles. Terry tested positive for COVID-19. I tested negative.  

The first few days were stressful. We didn’t know how far her sickness would progress. We canceled my caregivers and stayed to ourselves, not wanting to spread it to others. Over the next 10 days we quarantined and weren’t particularly careful between us — we ate together, slept together and Terry did all my personal care.  

Luckily Terry’s symptoms peaked quickly. She experienced a moderate cold and lost her sense of smell and taste for a few days, and she was tired for about a week. After quarantine I still tested negative. She still tested positive, and we were told she would for up to 90 days. I was very much relieved that her symptoms had gone away and that I had not contracted COVID-19. We wondered how the virus never got me, even though I was certainly exposed to it. 

Then I heard from a friend of mine about the concept of viral load, which explained my experience. He is a medical doctor who specializes in anesthesiology and has an undergraduate degree in immunology and virology. Medicine aside, I have trusted my life to him many times as my flight instructor for several sailplane winch-launches. I consider him qualified to speak on the subject and trust his opinion. 

He explained why transmission is exponentially less common between two vaccinated people. It all comes down to viral load — the total number of virus particles circulating inside someone. A person’s viral load determines how many virus particles are passed via droplets when that person talks or coughs and how sick they get. The higher the viral load, the more a person expels with every exhale. Also, people generally get sicker when they have a higher viral load to fight off. 

Vaccines prime the immune system so that it is better at inhibiting the virus from multiplying. This helps to keep a person from getting severe symptoms. It also reduces the likelihood that they spread the virus to others because every droplet they expel contains fewer particles of virus.  

He suggested I think of the vaccine as wearing a water-resistant shirt when you’re hanging out near an infected person. If a light sprinkle of rain (a low viral load) hits you, the shirt will shed off the water. But, if someone comes along with a bucket of water (a high viral load) and throws it on you then you might get a bit wet inside (infected).  

While a vaccinated person can still get the virus and pass it on, it takes a higher viral load to infect them, and they expel fewer virus particles once they are infected. The vaccine (the shirt) is a dramatically effective layer of protection to reduce spread. 

His explanation made perfect sense. Now I understand why I never caught COVID-19. My wife probably encountered a high viral load while visiting hospice that overpowered her vaccine protection, but she didn’t get sick enough to transmit a high enough viral load to overpower mine. I feel if either one of us were unvaccinated, the outcome would have probably been much more severe. I’m not here to debate or fight about vaccines, masks, rights or whatever — I’m just relaying our experience and the info from a trusted friend.  

I’m now once again very careful. There are viral loads out there that can get past the vaccines, especially when you’re encountering the unvaccinated.   


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Mary Jo Hackett RN CCM CDMS
Mary Jo Hackett RN CCM CDMS
2 years ago

Excellent analogy! Do I have permission to share your experience?

Kary Wright
Kary Wright
2 years ago

I am certainly good with sharing, I think it helps clear it up for many of us!