Vaccine Booster

[Alli]

Made an appointment for mine at the end of october, a couple days after I’m eligible. Looking forward to it. My sister is a long-haul covid sufferer (she got it back in march 2020), so I’m thinking I have weak genes

What kind of side effects is she still suffering?

 

[Cmaier]

What kind of side effects is she still suffering?

Swollen ankles, lethargy (some days she can’t get out of bed), bouts of very high heart rate, stuff like that. She’s had to go to the hospital a few times due to the heart rate issue, and they’re talking about putting in a pacemaker for irregular heartbeat issues. She’s 50, but a couple years back she ran a marathon, so she was in good shape before covid hit. (When she got it, she had only minor symptoms, and she only discovered it was covid months later when they did some testing because of some of these other symptoms).

 

[bunnspecial]

All in all a pretty straight forward experience at Wal-Greens today.

They took my information, vaccine card and insurance card and had me fill out the standard vaccine information plus a sheet certifying that I was in an eligible category for a booster.

This store was fairly busy and they said they had been since the word came down about boosters on Friday. It took them about 30 minutes to get around to me. I was the last shot out of that particular vial, and I heard them discussing that they had enough more appointments scheduled for today to go ahead and open and draw out another vial. It seems that they're definitely being used and not going to waste, which I'm glad of. We have such a vaccine excess around here that to me it's nearly a crime to waste it when people in some parts of the world are scampering for even one dose.

At least one person ahead of me for a COVID shot I heard say "second shot" and looked to be college aged. From what I'm seeing in my own students and hearing around, a lot of reluctant people are getting vaccinated in light of the governor's "vaccine or test" mandate for education(among other groups) so that they don't have to have a stick shoved up their nose every week.

I also got a flu shot while I was there. It just made sense to get it out of the way.

Overall a painless-figuratively and for now literally-experience(okay, it stung a bit, but not as much as the flu shot). We'll see what tomorrow brings. Fortunately I'm giving an exam tomorrow and Tuesday, so if I'm feeling draggy it's not a huge deal.

 

[Roller]

Swollen ankles, lethargy (some days she can’t get out of bed), bouts of very high heart rate, stuff like that. She’s had to go to the hospital a few times due to the heart rate issue, and they’re talking about putting in a pacemaker for irregular heartbeat issues. She’s 50, but a couple years back she ran a marathon, so she was in good shape before covid hit. (When she got it, she had only minor symptoms, and she only discovered it was covid months later when they did some testing because of some of these other symptoms).

I hope your sister's Long-COVID symptoms resolve or at least can be well-controlled. The range of manifestations speaks to the many ways SARS-CoV-2 affects organ systems, but there is much we still don't know about the mechanisms. Sadly, the possibility of significant lingering symptoms is ignored or minimized by the "but it has a 99% survival rate!" crowd. Even if the pandemic eventually wanes considerably, the added burden of caring for patients with Long COVID will be with us for many decades.

 

[Cmaier]

I hope your sister's Long-COVID symptoms resolve or at least can be well-controlled. The range of manifestations speaks to the many ways SARS-CoV-2 affects organ systems, but there is much we still don't know about the mechanisms. Sadly, the possibility of significant lingering symptoms is ignored or minimized by the "but it has a 99% survival rate!" crowd. Even if the pandemic eventually wanes considerably, the added burden of caring for patients with Long COVID will be with us for many decades.

I’m also concerned that it seems to be ignored by public health agencies. When the FDA and CDC panels were deciding on whether to allow boosters, the argument against seemed to be “it will make no difference in deaths” with a smidgen of “it will make little difference in hospitalizations.” And I’m thinking “yeah, but even if I don’t end up in the hospital, why should I be forced to risk spending a week in bed with symptoms twice as bad as the flu and the possibility that a year later I won’t be able to climb a flight of stairs, when there seems to be plenty of vaccine to go around and there is essentially 0 risk due to taking the vaccine.”

 

[bunnspecial]

I’m also concerned that it seems to be ignored by public health agencies. When the FDA and CDC panels were deciding on whether to allow boosters, the argument against seemed to be “it will make no difference in deaths” with a smidgen of “it will make little difference in hospitalizations.” And I’m thinking “yeah, but even if I don’t end up in the hospital, why should I be forced to risk spending a week in bed with symptoms twice as bad as the flu and the possibility that a year later I won’t be able to climb a flight of stairs, when there seems to be plenty of vaccine to go around and there is essentially 0 risk due to taking the vaccine.”

I certainly hope your sister improves in the long run. Long COVID is scary stuff.

Just last week, I was reading a post on Facebook from a girl I went to high school with. She's a year or two younger than me, and got COVID last summer(as a daycare worker, so an essential worker, and presumably at work). In the interim too she's also lost her dad to COVID, and has been traveling back and forth from Kentucky to Utah(where she now lives) a lot.

I hadn't realized that she had long COVID, but her post last week was basically how about a year and a half ago, she wouldn't have thought twice about running from terminal to terminal to catch a connection. Now, in her early 30s, she's embarassed to have to use a wheelchair escort at the airport, and has missed flights because they are short staffed(like everyone else). She also posted a picture of herself-the first I'd seen her post since she was sick(not that I follow Facebook to the second and didn't go digging to see if she's posted more) and she easily looks to have aged 20 years in the last year.

Scary, nasty stuff, and no one should have to go through it now that we have an easy way to avoid it.

 

[bunnspecial]

One day later and I'm feeling fine other than my arm being a little sore.

This one didn't seem to affect me as much as the second shot, which I hope isn't a bad sign...

 

[Thomas Veil]

I could get the booster in October, but I'm going to have to balance it with getting the standard flu shot (which I could postpone) and my second Shingrix shot (which I can't). Gonna have to talk to my doctor about how these need to be spaced out.

 

[Eric]

One day later and I'm feeling fine other than my arm being a little sore.

This one didn't seem to affect me as much as the second shot, which I hope isn't a bad sign...

Glad to hear that, the second one was definitely bad for me even though the effects didn't last too long. Hoping for a better experience with that booster. Anecdotally, I wonder if the fact that you're already pretty well protected made it milder this time.

 

[bunnspecial]

Glad to hear that, the second one was definitely bad for me even though the effects didn't last too long. Hoping for a better experience with that booster. Anecdotally, I wonder if the fact that you're already pretty well protected made it milder this time.

Thanks!

Unfortunately I think I may have spoken a bit too soon.

I made it through work today fine, but I started feeling super dragging around the time I got home(which would be a little over 24h since getting it) and I have a pretty rough headache now. Also running a mild fever now, but nothing really to worry about.

I got the 2nd on a Thursday and don't normally "work" on Fridays(complicated explanation, but basically as long as I'm checking my email a few times a day I'm good) and I think I intentionally took it easy then. The scheduling it on a Thursday wasn't an accident either.

Maybe it's just getting it+going in and putting in a moderately busy day of work that's doing it this time.

Whatever the case, it beats the heck out of COVID.

I think I've mentioned this elsewhere, but for education and several other fields the governor of Illinois put in vaccine or weekly test mandate. I wish my students would just get the flipping vaccine, especially since most of them are going into healthcare(my classes are about 80% pre-nursing and 15% dental hygiene). Aside from having to deal with them out sick, I've had way too many late and completely miss class because they're getting a test. It's on them as my direct boss, one of the deans, is also overseeing the testing program and she claims that there's a huge amount of testing capacity and few enough being done(on campus) that they can take walk-ins essentially any time, not to mention that they can book an appointment even day of. That's a different issue, though.

Further to that, though, I had one student who I helped transition from my full in-person class to the web-blended(which meets in person once a month for labs). This student also didn't want weekly tests. When I was figuring out how to navigate it, the dean told me "Tell her to get the G-D vaccine".

 

[Eric]

Thanks!

Unfortunately I think I may have spoken a bit too soon.

I made it through work today fine, but I started feeling super dragging around the time I got home(which would be a little over 24h since getting it) and I have a pretty rough headache now. Also running a mild fever now, but nothing really to worry about.

I got the 2nd on a Thursday and don't normally "work" on Fridays(complicated explanation, but basically as long as I'm checking my email a few times a day I'm good) and I think I intentionally took it easy then. The scheduling it on a Thursday wasn't an accident either.

Maybe it's just getting it+going in and putting in a moderately busy day of work that's doing it this time.

Whatever the case, it beats the heck out of COVID.

I think I've mentioned this elsewhere, but for education and several other fields the governor of Illinois put in vaccine or weekly test mandate. I wish my students would just get the flipping vaccine, especially since most of them are going into healthcare(my classes are about 80% pre-nursing and 15% dental hygiene). Aside from having to deal with them out sick, I've had way too many late and completely miss class because they're getting a test. It's on them as my direct boss, one of the deans, is also overseeing the testing program and she claims that there's a huge amount of testing capacity and few enough being done(on campus) that they can take walk-ins essentially any time, not to mention that they can book an appointment even day of. That's a different issue, though.

Further to that, though, I had one student who I helped transition from my full in-person class to the web-blended(which meets in person once a month for labs). This student also didn't want weekly tests. When I was figuring out how to navigate it, the dean told me "Tell her to get the G-D vaccine".

Sorry to hear that, sounds like it snuck up on you. I have heard others say it's a lot like the second dose, I'll definitely plan the timing accordingly and thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[bunnspecial]

Sorry to hear that, sounds like it snuck up on you. I have heard others say it's a lot like the second dose, I'll definitely plan the timing accordingly and thanks for sharing your experience.

So far feeling fine this morning, so hopefully that was the end of it. Honestly too a dose of tylenol helped last night.(not sure if they're still saying avoid Ibuprofen, but I did just in case) With a good night's sleep I feel ready to go today, so there again nothing to be concerned about.

And there again, this beats the heck out of COVID.

 

[Alli]

I could get the booster in October, but I'm going to have to balance it with getting the standard flu shot (which I could postpone) and my second Shingrix shot (which I can't). Gonna have to talk to my doctor about how these need to be spaced out.

After getting my booster I asked about waiting for the flu shot and was told I could get it that afternoon if I wanted. Waited a week just in case.

 

[Eric]

After getting my booster I asked about waiting for the flu shot and was told I could get it that afternoon if I wanted. Waited a week just in case.

Smart. I tend to get side effects from the flu shot and I definitely got them with the second dose of the COVID vaccine, common sense for me would be to at least wait a week between them.

 

[shadow puppet]

After getting my booster I asked about waiting for the flu shot and was told I could get it that afternoon if I wanted. Waited a week just in case.

I got my flu shot on 9/11 after the pharmacist said it wouldn't be any problem to get my Covid booster on 9/20. The nurse administering my booster said the same.

 

[Joe]

We have healthcare professionals coming to my job on October 21st to give boosters to those eligible and want them. I signed up.

 

[Eric]

We have healthcare professionals coming to my job on October 21st to give boosters to those eligible and want them. I signed up.

I was called in early for my first doses way back when because of a pre-existing condition but haven't heard from them about the booster, I'm sure I qualify though so maybe I need to reach out to them this time.

 

[Alli]

I was called in early for my first doses way back when because of a pre-existing condition but haven't heard from them about the booster, I'm sure I qualify though so maybe I need to reach out to them this time.

It couldn’t hurt.

 

[Hrafn]

Go Vaccine! Go, Go Vaccine!

Is that the wrong kind of booster?

We're not eligible for a while, yet. Sadly.

 

[ronntaylor]

We get our boosters this coming Tuesday in Virgina. My NYC doc said that I didn't have to wait till my next quarterly appointment in three weeks, and it's no hassle getting it since so many don't want any vaccine in our county down South.