Getting my 1st Covid vaccination Tuesday

[Doc Brown]

I got the Moderna one on Feb. 26th and the only thing I got was a surprising amount of muscle pain that spread throughout my whole arm.  It got worse as the day went on but was gone the next day.  That's it though.  Expect to be in worse shape after the second one on Friday but it'll be a tiny price to pay.

[HereComesTheReignAgain]

I get my second dose of the moderna shot on Friday. Just had arm soreness and very mild muscle aches after the first dose. NJ is a free for all.  I was lucky and got a CVS appointment after refreshing the web page constantly for a few days. They did not verify if anyone was actually qualified for the vaccine.  I was ready in case they asked for proof. 

Edited March 22, 2021 by chknwing334

[Hapless Bills Fan]

13 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

Got my 1st dose of the Pfizer a couple weeks ago. I go for the 2nd dose this Friday!!
 

Ive never been so excited to go get jabbed with a needle! 😂

 

Both my elderly parents already had both doses of the Moderna vaccine. My sis has had both doses of the Pfizer. A Bunch more friends, family and neighbors have had 1 or both doses of the vaccine (in fact most people I know have, now that I think about it). Vaccine rollout here seems to be going pretty well. I’ve been impressed.

 

It's said "the happiest place to work right now is a covid-19 vaccine clinic".  Nurses working them say the same thing- they've never seen so many people so happy to get jabbed with a needle and so smiley and friendly.

[teef]

good for you op, and i agree with everyone...you'll never see people more happy to get an injection in all of their lives.  i finished my moderna shot in february, and haven't looked back.  that this point, everyone in my immediate family has had the vaccine, so just to be able to hang out without worry has been great. 

 

 

one thing i have heard from everyone vaccinated so far is to how well run the clinics are around here.  very efficient and very smooth.  mine was done at a county highway dept.  i didn't have to get out of my car as we were directed towards a garage.  rolled down the window, did the deed, then waited the 15 minutes in a parking lot next to the building.  both of my appointment times were at 11:30.  one appointment i drove away at 11:47 and the second at 11:48, including the 15 minute wait time.  

 

 

edit:  as far as the reaction...i just had a very sore arm.  wildly sore actually, and maybe a bit tired, but the next day after the second shot was business as usual.

Edited March 22, 2021 by teef

[Just Jack]

Is everyone here having to wait the 15 minutes for a reaction? The clinic I went to they did not make you wait.  But it was for hospital employees, not the general public.  Walk in, line up, they took my paperwork, sat me down, stabbed me, got up, and left.  In and out in less than 5 minutes for both doses. 

[DrDawkinstein]

17 minutes ago, Just Jack said:

Is everyone here having to wait the 15 minutes for a reaction? The clinic I went to they did not make you wait.  But it was for hospital employees, not the general public.  Walk in, line up, they took my paperwork, sat me down, stabbed me, got up, and left.  In and out in less than 5 minutes for both doses. 

 

The Kroger I went to was pretty strict on making people wait. But that was mostly because they were giving the J&J one-dose which is a more potent shot and has a higher rate of reaction. And when I say "strict" they were plenty nice about it, but they did make it clear that I needed to stay in the waiting room until they told me I could leave. And they timed it at 15min exactly.

[The Jokeman]

My wife gets her first one Pfizer today, I don't get mine until April 19th.

[teef]

31 minutes ago, Just Jack said:

Is everyone here having to wait the 15 minutes for a reaction? The clinic I went to they did not make you wait.  But it was for hospital employees, not the general public.  Walk in, line up, they took my paperwork, sat me down, stabbed me, got up, and left.  In and out in less than 5 minutes for both doses. 

maybe it's because you were in a hospital setting.  for ours, they put a sticky note on your windshield letting the attendants know when you could leave the lot.  very polite, but they were strict.

[Johnnycage46]

My wife got her first shot on Friday (I get my first a week from this Friday) and she felt pretty tired that afternoon but nothing too bad.  My father had his 2nd shot last week and he felt really run down that day but then felt fine.

[Saxum]

Looked on list of conditions which can move you to front of line, pretty easy to qualify in US.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-medical-conditions.html

 

Talked to a friend who put a pack of cigarettes in pocket, walked into place and told he had underlying issue smoking and they game him a shot.

He never smoked in his life.

 

I qualify because I am "obese" and with 20 less pounds I do not qualify.  All of my weight is "beer gut" with no extra weight elsewhere.

 

Pretty sure the people who calculate the BMI are same ones who recommend food ingredients to school which none of the kids want to eat.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

2 hours ago, Just Jack said:

Is everyone here having to wait the 15 minutes for a reaction? The clinic I went to they did not make you wait.  But it was for hospital employees, not the general public.  Walk in, line up, they took my paperwork, sat me down, stabbed me, got up, and left.  In and out in less than 5 minutes for both doses. 

 

I guess in hospital they might figure if you collapse OTJ the right people with the right stuff will be close at hand?

 

All the clinics and pharmacies that I know of that are using Moderna or Pfizer make you wait.  It's a simple safety precaution to counter a rare but serious adverse event.  (I was not aware that pharmacies that give vaccinations have to have stuff on hand to treat anaphylactic shock, but apparently this isn't new!)

 

9 minutes ago, Limeaid said:

Looked on list of conditions which can move you to front of line, pretty easy to qualify in US.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-medical-conditions.html

 

Talked to a friend who put a pack of cigarettes in pocket, walked into place and told he had underlying issue smoking and they game him a shot.

He never smoked in his life.

 

I qualify because I am "obese" and with 20 less pounds I do not qualify.  All of my weight is "beer gut" with no extra weight elsewhere.

 

Pretty sure the people who calculate the BMI are same ones who recommend food ingredients to school which none of the kids want to eat.

 

The qualifying conditions and the order in which they are taken, vary somewhat from state to state.  Maryland, for example, has people with medical conditions that place them at risk behind "continuity of government" (which apparently is not just federal, but state and local government) and a bunch of industries.  There are arguments to be made both ways.

 

From the CDC link you give:  smoking and BMI>30 but <40 do not qualify in MO.

 

Most clinics and pharmacies of which I'm aware rely primarily on self-certification.  Mostly, it works.  No system is perfect and some folks, like your friend, will always cheat.

 

 

[Saxum]

20 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

Most clinics and pharmacies of which I'm aware rely primarily on self-certification.  Mostly, it works.  No system is perfect and some folks, like your friend, will always cheat.

 

 

Well he is a New England fan with a Cam jersey.

 

My doctor told me due to previous lung damage due to bronchitis and pneumonia I should get a shot but when I did search with those conditions it did not show up. 

He did not mention my weight.

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

21 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

 

Most clinics and pharmacies of which I'm aware rely primarily on self-certification.  Mostly, it works.  No system is perfect and some folks, like your friend, will always cheat.

 

 

Given what I perceive to be the failure of most state governments in rolling out the vaccines, I have the sense that the providers don’t care anymore. I sense the vibe is that It’s more important to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible. We tried with the priority system— now it is “whoever can navigate the maze better,” wins. 
 

I had a debate with my wife about this. She has a really moral objection to line jumpers. I view it as: we just need to maximize shots at this point. Some countries have adopted this latter approach— Indonesia has vaccinated its working population first:

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-indonesia-explaine-idUSKBN2990MX

 

[teef]

1 minute ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

Given what I perceive to be the failure of most state governments in rolling out the vaccines, I have the sense that the providers don’t care anymore. I sense the vibe is that It’s more important to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible. We tried with the priority system— now it is “whoever can navigate the maze better,” wins. 
 

I had a debate with my wife about this. She has a really moral objection to line jumpers. I view it as: we just need to maximize shots at this point. Some countries have adopted this latter approach— Indonesia has vaccinated its working population first:

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-indonesia-explaine-idUSKBN2990MX

 

i think this is exactly what's happening now.  around me us in the rochester area, i know a number of people who are just saying there's an underlying condition when they're perfectly healthy.  my brother in law went this morning with some friends.  now that it seems to be less of an issue to get an appointment, i'm all for anyone that wants it getting it.  

[Hapless Bills Fan]

5 minutes ago, Limeaid said:

 

Well he is a New England fan with a Cam jersey.

 

My doctor told me due to previous lung damage due to bronchitis and pneumonia I should get a shot but when I did search with those conditions it did not show up. 

He did not mention my weight.

 

What everyone here should know is that to my knowledge EVERY state that is offering earlier vaccination to people with co-morbid conditions has a selection something like "individual with other conditions a physician evaluates as placing them at higher risk".    The reason for this is it was recognized that if every rare condition or disease were listed, the list would become unreadably long.  So there was room left for physician judgement of their individual patients.

 

So anyone: if your physician says something like "you should get a shot due to your ### condition or disease placing you at higher risk", ask them to make a note to that effect in your chart and give you a note so stating.  Then go get vaccinated as soon as the tier for "individuals at higher risk due to ....." opens up.  It's legit.

 

As for the Cam jersey LOL Figures.

 

[Bray Wyatt]

My dad (will be 76 in May) has done his 2 doses of Pfizer. My wife got her first Moderna a couple weeks ago, has to get at the end of the month for her 2nd. I got the J&J one this last Saturday.  My wife was fatigued for like a week and struggled to get through her work day but has since been fine, she said others in her office got the moderna first shot as well and they all had the same fatigue she had. My dad did not have any reactions to the Pfizer shots. My mom had her first shot (she is 62) and didnt seem to have any reactions, though not sure which one she got.

 

As for me, my arm is sore where the shot was, kinda like a charlie horse, but I get that from when I get the flu shot for like a day or so too. I felt a little like a hang over yesterday, though could have been the bourbon I drank on Saturday, felt a little fevery at times (nothing big where I felt I needed to check my temp, just warm in the face) and had a runny nose for like an hour or so. Today I feel pretty fine, just sore arm.

 

Here in TN, we dont have a choice as to what we get, just when we show up you get what they got. I kinda wanted the two shot ones as they seem (based on what I heard and Hap can correct me if I am wrong) that they have a better effectiveness against it, but being 36 (same as my wife) I guess i shouldn't have too much to worry about regardless.

 

[Hap says: the evidence on this point is ambiguous because the clinical trial criteria were different.  Arguments to be made both ways.  All 3 good vaccines with good effectiveness preventing serious disease as actual use data roll in from different countries]

 

16 minutes ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

Given what I perceive to be the failure of most state governments in rolling out the vaccines, I have the sense that the providers don’t care anymore. I sense the vibe is that It’s more important to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible. We tried with the priority system— now it is “whoever can navigate the maze better,” wins. 
 

I had a debate with my wife about this. She has a really moral objection to line jumpers. I view it as: we just need to maximize shots at this point. Some countries have adopted this latter approach— Indonesia has vaccinated its working population first:

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-indonesia-explaine-idUSKBN2990MX

 

 

Yeah my wife to get on the list (she was 1-C as my son has a medical thing that qualified us) she had to fill out a form and all that stating it, she did hers a couple weeks before mine, made me schedule to get mine after.  I didnt have to fill out anything or bring anything other than my ID to the appointment. I just went online and scheduled where and when. Got mine done at MTSU

[Hapless Bills Fan]

5 minutes ago, Miyagi-Do Karate said:

Given what I perceive to be the failure of most state governments in rolling out the vaccines, I have the sense that the providers don’t care anymore. I sense the vibe is that It’s more important to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible. We tried with the priority system— now it is “whoever can navigate the maze better,” wins. 
 

I had a debate with my wife about this. She has a really moral objection to line jumpers. I view it as: we just need to maximize shots at this point. Some countries have adopted this latter approach— Indonesia has vaccinated its working population first:

 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-indonesia-explaine-idUSKBN2990MX

 

We need to be better at getting the vaccine into the arms of people who are at higher risk whether or not they can "navigate the maze".

 

I see it two ways.  On the one hand, Don't Lie, Don't Cheat. 

 

On the other hand, out-state in MO, there are mass clinics and pharmacies that are struggling to find enough arms for their supplies of vaccine.   We had one event where at 3:30 pm they had 1,500 out of 2,000 doses remaining and threw it open to all comers.  Still had more than 1,200 doses remaining and wasted 142 shots.  It's hard to be a line-jumper when there is no line.

 

 

[Saxum]

1 minute ago, Hapless Bills Fan said:

 

We need to be better at getting the vaccine into the arms of people who are at higher risk whether or not they can "navigate the maze".

 

Still had more than 1,200 doses remaining and wasted 142 shots.  It's hard to be a line-jumper when there is no line.
 

 

Not entirely understanding the waste part but I'd think that the media (radio and tv mostly) could do public service announcements when there are shots available and the shots will expire or whatever they call it.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

1 minute ago, Limeaid said:

Not entirely understanding the waste part but I'd think that the media (radio and tv mostly) could do public service announcements when there are shots available and the shots will expire or whatever they call it.

 

Sure, I'll explain that.  Moderna is a 10 dose vial.  Pfizer and J&J are 6 dose vials.  All 3 have a ticking clock on each vial - after 6 hrs from the first puncture of the septum, it has to be discarded.  Pfizer also requires a special fussy syringe to get the 6th dose out of the vial.  

 

So if vials get punctured then vaccine remains, as 6 hrs approaches they either go in an arm or go in the trash.  Ideally it's minimal, but at mass vaccine events to speed things along they may have one crew of people drawing doses into vaccines and another crew vaccinating, so if they get "no shows" they get shots in syringes that either go in an arm ASAP, or go to waste.

 

The timeline for this too short for media to be effective, but most pharmacies around here will maintain a "waste list" of people willing to drop everything and show up and some mass vaccination events will accept "waste list signups" of people who show up near the end of the event.

 

There are storage limits on how long Pfizer and Moderna vaccines can be thawed and stored at refrigerator temperatures, but the shortest is 5 days, so it's feasible to schedule a "pop up clinic" at a nearby hospital or DOH, which may be publicized on media (TV, radio, social).

[Augie]

My sister is currently 6 months too young to get shots in Wisconsin. She was afraid to attend my son’s wedding in April without vaccination, but discovered that since they prepare and serve meals at Salvation Army a couple times a week they are considered essential workers.  It’s nice to see good deeds get rewarded once in a while! She gets the second shot next week. 

 

Apparently they are far more strict in Wisconsin than Georgia. She knows people where a wife with an appointment was turned away for being a few months short of the cutoff, while the husband got his shot. Just give her the darn shot, IMO. Here in Georgia my wife learned my 93 year old mother can designate 2 caregivers. There was no form, no verification, no questions asked, we just booked our shots online and have completed both rounds. (It IS legit, BTW.) It’s funny how it is so different from place to place. 

 

 

.

Edited March 22, 2021 by Augie