First Georgia Woman Shares Monkey Pox Experience WJBF (Newhouse PKG)

08/01/22
MARIETTA, G.A..- The Biden administration declared monkeypox a national public health
emergency last week. Following the announcement, his team is planning to allow health
providers a different method of injection that uses one-fifth as much per shot.
Georgia approaches nearly 600 cases of Monkeypox, according to the federal Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. Georgia’s health officials are advising the community to
consider taking the The Jynneos vaccine. The vaccination requires two doses 28 days apart.
Georgia’s Department of Health Coordinator Pamela Kirkland explains anyone can contract the
virus but only certain people are eligible to receive a vaccine during this time.
“It's a respiratory virus, it can be spread worse by respiratory droplets,” Kirkland said. “Anyone
can contract the virus, but the majority of the cases that we're seeing in our district and in our
state in Georgia are within the LGBT community.”
Almost all of the cases in the United States have been identified in men who have sex with men,
according to a CDC briefing last month. This has caused a lot of misconception of the virus
being a sexual transmitted disease.
Camille Seaton, is the first Georgia woman to speak about the diagnosis. She believes she
contracted the virus by handling money as a cashier in a gas station.
“We get a lot of homeless people that we have to clean up after and a lot of their money that's
been in their pockets or wherever, wherever they've been that we don't know and we don't wear
gloves and we're handling the money” Seaton said.
From only traveling from work to home she began showing symptoms and contacted the
emergency room.
It's excruciating pain,” Seaton said. “I was crying more than anything, like every day. I would
not wish this pain on anybody, this virus, on anyone.”
Seaton explained she felt like a test dummy and was sent home with unanswered questions by
medical professionals.
“They were asking me questions that they didn’t even have answers to,” Seaton said. “They were
putting fluids in me to test anything out and I felt bullied out of the hospital.You're you're trying
and trying and airing things that you don't even know is going to work. And, you know, it's very
disheartening.”
Seaton began to take progress photos and turned to social media to spread awareness.
“I just wanted to spread awareness so that people knew that they weren't alone,” Seaton said.
After several of Seaton’s videos gained over a million views on TikTok she hopes to shut down
the stigma that comes with the virus.
“ I wish people would actually do their research now that there are more things out there that you
could read about the virus,” Seaton said. “And a lot of people have a common misconception
about this virus that it's an STD when it's not. They especially give me a lot of backlash because
of the way it's on my face, the position. But it's not the only place that it was at.”
After suffering the symptoms for nearly a month, Seaton has returned back to work after
receiving approval from several medical professionals and testing negative.
Camille Seaton is currently asking for support to cover the costs of her medical bills,
prescriptions, and daughter’s schooling.