Texas man hits out at own stupidity as both feet amputated from Covid when he decided not to get vaccinated

‘I’m a toddler again – I’m going to have to learn new things that everyone takes for granted’

A Texas man has hit out at his own “stupidity” after both of his feet were amputated following complications from Covid-19 after he decided not to get vaccinated.

Pepe Forina was particularly vulnerable to the virus as he suffers from pre-existing conditions like diabetes and hypertension. The 54-year-old lost both of his legs to sepsis – the body’s extreme reaction to infection – after ending up in the hospital with Covid-19.

“I looked at my feet and my feet were black,” Mr Forina told KRGV.

When he was asked why he didn’t get the vaccine, Mr Forina said: “Stupidity basically, I didn’t believe in it.”

“It’s a choice, a choice that I made poorly,” he told the outlet. “Learn from me, and hopefully you won’t be in the same situation that I’m in.”

The Covid-19 vaccines have been shown to massively reduce the likelihood of severe disease leading to hospitalisation and death.

Mr Forina’s family received a call on 9 August – two weeks after he was hospitalised in Edinburg, Texas on 26 July – to let them know that he may not survive the night.

“August 8th the doctor calls my wife and says ‘he is showing signs of improvement’,” Mr Forina told ValleyCentral. “August the 9th they call her back with a totally different message and said he might not make it overnight.”

“Just like that he took a turn for the worse and they called us and then he was critically ill at that point, he went from going home to being critically ill,” his wife, Margarita Forina, told the outlet.

“They took me out of the Covid unit and into the ICU in the regular hospital. I looked at my feet and I knew something was wrong,” Mr Forina added.

“My brother was in the ICU with me. He bathed me in holy water from my head all over my body and basically, they gave me the last rights,” Mr Forina told KRGV.

He suffers from a peripheral vascular disease that is connected to his diabetes. He managed to survive but had both of his legs amputated above the knee after catching sepsis, ValleyCentral reported.

Mr Forina said it was a “no-brainer” to have his legs removed as the only other option was dying.

“It was either amputate my feet and live, or leave them on and die,” he said. “So it was a no-brainer.”

Dr Federico Vallejo at DHR Health, where Mr Forina was admitted, told ValleyCentral that the patient “shouldn’t be alive”.

“The odds were against him. It’s actually quite amazing that he had recovered,” Dr Vallejo added.

“Covid itself can cause blood clots, we know 15 per cent will have it. Then the use of medications to try to protect the heart and the brain,” Dr Vallejo said.

“It is a life-changing experience. I’m going to have to learn, basically, I’m a toddler again I’m going to have to learn new things that everyone takes for granted,” Mr Forina added.