MAC and getting the COVID vaccine

I had both pfizer doses more than a month ago and was beginning to feel more secure and letting up a bit. Just riding the elevator with other people and a friend stopped by. But now I'm anxious and thinking I should isolate again. Here's why.

First I'm not sure I correctly received the second dose. The vaccinator was an er doctor who told me she volunteered because she had been treating covid patients for almost a year and with every shot she gave she felt she was keeping someone out of her er. I thought that was so moving but then she fluffed the shot and had to do it again. There was no peirce just pressure so maybe she forgot to take the cap off? In any case she had to get another syringe. This time I felt the prick but she had trouble finding the spot to put the band aid. Thinking about it, when do er doctors ever give shots?. Still it's not brain surgery so she must have put the vaccine in my arm. Right?

But then I had no reaction at all to the second shot. I had a sore arm after the first one but nothing at all after the second. I envy anyone who had a reaction. Nausea? Chills? Fever? Jealous.

My body did not create the antibodies to pneumonia after vaccination and I was given the shot 3 times. Apparently my body is not good at creating antibodies.

Finally I read yesterday thst there were 89 breakthroughs in Minnesota. A breakthrough is when a vaccinated person comes down with covid. There were breakthroughs in several states and the author pointed out that the vaccine is 95% effective not 100% so some vaccinated people will still come down with the virus. While it's a small number of vaccinated people who have caught it compared to the large number of vaccines given, it's still scary.

I had both pfizer doses more than a month ago and was beginning to feel more secure and letting up a bit. Just riding the elevator with other people and a friend stopped by. But now I'm anxious and thinking I should isolate again. Here's why.

First I'm not sure I correctly received the second dose. The vaccinator was an er doctor who told me she volunteered because she had been treating covid patients for almost a year and with every shot she gave she felt she was keeping someone out of her er. I thought that was so moving but then she fluffed the shot and had to do it again. There was no peirce just pressure so maybe she forgot to take the cap off? In any case she had to get another syringe. This time I felt the prick but she had trouble finding the spot to put the band aid. Thinking about it, when do er doctors ever give shots?. Still it's not brain surgery so she must have put the vaccine in my arm. Right?

But then I had no reaction at all to the second shot. I had a sore arm after the first one but nothing at all after the second. I envy anyone who had a reaction. Nausea? Chills? Fever? Jealous.

My body did not create the antibodies to pneumonia after vaccination and I was given the shot 3 times. Apparently my body is not good at creating antibodies.

Finally I read yesterday thst there were 89 breakthroughs in Minnesota. A breakthrough is when a vaccinated person comes down with covid. There were breakthroughs in several states and the author pointed out that the vaccine is 95% effective not 100% so some vaccinated people will still come down with the virus. While it's a small number of vaccinated people who have caught it compared to the large number of vaccines given, it's still scary.

@rits My husband had both shots of Pfizer vaccine. The first time he had a slightly sore arm. The second time he had nothing. You are probably good to go! irene5

Rita - Please relax - 89 breakthrough cases in MN out of 869,000 fully vaccinated people = .01 % getting sick - that means so far the vaccine is 99.99% effective at preventing infection. Further, only one has been hospitalized and none have died. Remember that the people vaccinated so far are the most at-risk of serious illness or death (over 65) and the most exposed - health care & education workers.

As for ER docs giving injections - it happens all the time. And I, who am an injection wimp, felt only a pinprick from both of my injections when given (though I did later have an immune reaction & sore arm.) A number of people here had no particular symptoms after the Pfizer vaccine - it seems more reacted to Moderna. If you are concerned about whether you are effectively vaccinated, please check back here later - I have turned to someone to learn how to go about getting an antibody test & what to do if you didn't form antibodies.

I have been following this closely because BOTH of my RN daughters in MN have had to tell vaccinated people that they tested positive and we all got very worried when it happened. But both report that the post-vaccine infections are being monitored very carefully, and serious infection is virtually 100% protected by the vaccine.

Also, at 95% the effectiveness of Covid vaccine is far above the seasonal flu shots (40-70% depending on the year) and even the new Shingrix vaccine (80-90%.)

I am in a community now where all the people I regularly associate with are fully vaccinated, and we still are being careful. And masking fully & distancing when we are out in public. This is as much to protect others if we are silently carrying the virus as because we are worried about getting sick. Also, eating out seems like the riskiest activity we normally would do, so we eat during off-peak hours, and only in places that offer outdoor dining or well-distanced indoor dining & have their staffs properly masked & cleaning things.
Sue

I had both pfizer doses more than a month ago and was beginning to feel more secure and letting up a bit. Just riding the elevator with other people and a friend stopped by. But now I'm anxious and thinking I should isolate again. Here's why.

First I'm not sure I correctly received the second dose. The vaccinator was an er doctor who told me she volunteered because she had been treating covid patients for almost a year and with every shot she gave she felt she was keeping someone out of her er. I thought that was so moving but then she fluffed the shot and had to do it again. There was no peirce just pressure so maybe she forgot to take the cap off? In any case she had to get another syringe. This time I felt the prick but she had trouble finding the spot to put the band aid. Thinking about it, when do er doctors ever give shots?. Still it's not brain surgery so she must have put the vaccine in my arm. Right?

But then I had no reaction at all to the second shot. I had a sore arm after the first one but nothing at all after the second. I envy anyone who had a reaction. Nausea? Chills? Fever? Jealous.

My body did not create the antibodies to pneumonia after vaccination and I was given the shot 3 times. Apparently my body is not good at creating antibodies.

Finally I read yesterday thst there were 89 breakthroughs in Minnesota. A breakthrough is when a vaccinated person comes down with covid. There were breakthroughs in several states and the author pointed out that the vaccine is 95% effective not 100% so some vaccinated people will still come down with the virus. While it's a small number of vaccinated people who have caught it compared to the large number of vaccines given, it's still scary.

@rits & @irene5 Here is the response I received from my go-to RN on the vaccine - she works in the ER and on the TeleMed & Covid lines for a major health care provider, and consults directly with the Covid specialists there. This is how they respond to vaccine questions:

"Some people don't have strong immune response to 1st or 2nd dose or both. Some people have strong response to 1st and not 2nd. Some people have strong response to 2nd and not first. Some people have strong reaction to both. The level of immune reaction that you can feel/see/measure has no impact on the vaccine's ability to protect you. Your body has received the info and build the antibodies.

Being tested for antibodies is not recommended. The test is expensive, and no medical decisions will be made from having it done no matter what the result is so most insurance companies will not pay for it."

That said, the vaccine manufacturers are also monitoring the early recipients to see when the immune response and/or antibodies begin to fade. That will be the key to determining if or when Covid vaccine boosters will be recommended, and whether they will need to "tweak" their formula to cover virus variants.

Based on all of the above, we need to realize that the world is not a perfect place, there is no perfect vaccine, nor any permanent preventative measure against all illness, disease and risk. I wear my seat belt because it reduces my risk of severe injury or death in a car accident, I clean, store & cook my food properly to reduce the risk of food-borne illness, I exercise to keep my body as strong as possible, I take prescribed meds to reduce the risk of my diseases progressing, I get preventative health screenings to reduce my risk of dying from cancer, and I get vaccines to reduce my risk of severe illness or death from infections. Is my life 100% risk free? No, but I still plan to live well & enjoy it.

Sue

@rits & @irene5 Here is the response I received from my go-to RN on the vaccine - she works in the ER and on the TeleMed & Covid lines for a major health care provider, and consults directly with the Covid specialists there. This is how they respond to vaccine questions:

"Some people don't have strong immune response to 1st or 2nd dose or both. Some people have strong response to 1st and not 2nd. Some people have strong response to 2nd and not first. Some people have strong reaction to both. The level of immune reaction that you can feel/see/measure has no impact on the vaccine's ability to protect you. Your body has received the info and build the antibodies.

Being tested for antibodies is not recommended. The test is expensive, and no medical decisions will be made from having it done no matter what the result is so most insurance companies will not pay for it."

That said, the vaccine manufacturers are also monitoring the early recipients to see when the immune response and/or antibodies begin to fade. That will be the key to determining if or when Covid vaccine boosters will be recommended, and whether they will need to "tweak" their formula to cover virus variants.

Based on all of the above, we need to realize that the world is not a perfect place, there is no perfect vaccine, nor any permanent preventative measure against all illness, disease and risk. I wear my seat belt because it reduces my risk of severe injury or death in a car accident, I clean, store & cook my food properly to reduce the risk of food-borne illness, I exercise to keep my body as strong as possible, I take prescribed meds to reduce the risk of my diseases progressing, I get preventative health screenings to reduce my risk of dying from cancer, and I get vaccines to reduce my risk of severe illness or death from infections. Is my life 100% risk free? No, but I still plan to live well & enjoy it.

Sue

I am so very sorry for your loss, Carolyn. This is a difficult path for most all, but for some, much more. May your friend rest in peace. I will be thinking of you both as I get my second vaccination next Wednesday. With sincere sympathy to you. Toni

@rits & @irene5 Here is the response I received from my go-to RN on the vaccine - she works in the ER and on the TeleMed & Covid lines for a major health care provider, and consults directly with the Covid specialists there. This is how they respond to vaccine questions:

"Some people don't have strong immune response to 1st or 2nd dose or both. Some people have strong response to 1st and not 2nd. Some people have strong response to 2nd and not first. Some people have strong reaction to both. The level of immune reaction that you can feel/see/measure has no impact on the vaccine's ability to protect you. Your body has received the info and build the antibodies.

Being tested for antibodies is not recommended. The test is expensive, and no medical decisions will be made from having it done no matter what the result is so most insurance companies will not pay for it."

That said, the vaccine manufacturers are also monitoring the early recipients to see when the immune response and/or antibodies begin to fade. That will be the key to determining if or when Covid vaccine boosters will be recommended, and whether they will need to "tweak" their formula to cover virus variants.

Based on all of the above, we need to realize that the world is not a perfect place, there is no perfect vaccine, nor any permanent preventative measure against all illness, disease and risk. I wear my seat belt because it reduces my risk of severe injury or death in a car accident, I clean, store & cook my food properly to reduce the risk of food-borne illness, I exercise to keep my body as strong as possible, I take prescribed meds to reduce the risk of my diseases progressing, I get preventative health screenings to reduce my risk of dying from cancer, and I get vaccines to reduce my risk of severe illness or death from infections. Is my life 100% risk free? No, but I still plan to live well & enjoy it.

Sue

My husband and I received our second shot of Moderna vaccine yesterday around 2:30 PM. Neither of us had much of a reaction to our first shot except a bit of achiness around the injection site. As of this writing, he still doesn't have any negative reaction to the second shot (about 23 hours later) and I started to feel like I was under the weather this morning, about 9:30 AM. Low grade fever, achiness and chills (both low level). The symptoms are still persisting. I have been told by others who have had this vaccine twice that the symptoms usually don't last more than 24 hours. As I'm typing this message, though, I'm already feeling much better. Whew!

About antibody testing: I have not intentionally sought out antibody testing. But Red Cross conducts antibody testing for everybody who donates blood there starting last July. They have 3 categories for the antibody results: Negative=no antibody detected, positive=person has been exposed to the coronavirus and recovered, reactive=person who has not had virus exposure but has had at least one shot of a vaccine. I was tested negative for antibody for the 3 donations last year: July, September & December. Then I scheduled my first donation of this year a couple of weeks after receiving my first vaccine shot. The antibody result is now showing reactive. I talked to the person at the Red Cross about whether I could obtain anything more specific than the one-word result, she said they would not give out anything more than that. But at least I know that I do have antibody now due to my first shot.