Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — Matt Ford is in the business of synthesizing films, so it wasn’t difficult for him to make videos and put them on Tik Tok. But his latest post revolves around his personal experience with monkeypox. The video he posted had been viewed nearly 250,000 times as of Friday afternoon.
The goal of its publication is to contribute to educating people about the spread of the virus, and encouraging them to take the vaccine: “Because you do not want to be infected with it.”
Anyone can get monkeypox, but a “significant proportion” of recorded cases are among gay and bisexual men, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“First, I realized I was infected and noticed symptoms Friday, June 17,” Ford told CNN from his isolation in his Los Angeles home, where he will remain for a few more weeks until he is no longer infectious.
He had hoped to take part in a gay parade in New York last week, “but that was out of the question.”
In the video, Ford talked about how the virus spreads, and depicted some of the sores he had.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Control, monkeypox spreads upon direct contact with a person who has a rash, crusting, or their own bodily fluids. In addition to respiratory secretions as a result of prolonged face-to-face contact, or by touching objects that have previously touched the body fluids of an infected person. Ford explained that his information from Twitter about the spread of monkeypox was vague, but he did not know how close it was to infection until a friend called him and told him that he might have been exposed to the virus.
Ford, 30, said he rushed to get a full body check, and “I noticed some spots I hadn’t seen before.” Describing it as a pimple or hair under the skin, he went to a clinic in West Hollywood for a test, which came back positive a few days later.
He explained that “the blisters grew rapidly and filled with fluid”, describing that they were painful, especially those in sensitive areas. He also felt like he had the flu.
People with monkeypox may have fever, headache, muscle aches, chills, swollen lymph nodes, and feel tired. He added that he also suffered from night sweats, sore throat and cough.
The sores were so painful that he went back to the doctor, who prescribed him painkillers.
He commented that it was “really useful because I was finally able to sleep through the night”, noting that “even the painkillers did not completely numb the pain. But it became bearable that I was able to sleep.”
In the video, we see Ford staring at the camera, speaking clearly, warning the others: “Hi, my name is Matt. I have monkeypox, it’s so painful you wouldn’t want to have it.”
He took a tour of some of the 25 sores he had, spread across his face, arms, and stomach muscles.
While the disease is more common in Central and West Africa, it has now spread to countries with few, if any, cases in the past.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Control, the number of probable and confirmed infections reached 460 in the United States as of Friday. The Los Angeles Department of Health’s monkeypox counter indicates that there are 35 confirmed cases.
The county confirmed to CNN Thursday that it is sending isolation orders for people who have tested positive for monkeypox. This is what happened with Ford, who was notified by e-mail from the county on June 24.
Ford was worried that not enough people knew about the disease, so he came up with the idea of recording a video and posting it on the Tik Tok application.
He explained that “it became clear to me since I had it that it spreads quickly,” noting that “this is a very important reason that prompted me to talk about this disease and raise awareness about it.”
He added that the reaction to the video was “awesome”. He was encouraged because many people told him they didn’t know it before and thanked him for spreading the benefit.
Ford hoped the video would help end the stigma associated with the disease.
“There should be no stigma,” he said. “It’s just unforeseen circumstances.”
He added that he has always “believed that silence is the number one enemy,” noting that “I would be happy to provide people with knowledge about this disease and for more of them to be safe.”