My Experience with the COVID-19 Vaccine

ICYMI, I tweeted about my experiences with the first and second doses of the Moderna C-19 vaccine, and I thought I’d share those experiences on my blog as well.

I am pro-vaccine, and very grateful to have been able to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and for Spousal Unit to have been able to get vaccinated as well.

Crew Dog, onesickvet.com

Spousal Unit & I were able to get our vaccines through the VA, for which I am grateful.

EDIT: Spousal Unit & I did not premedicate with Tylenol, NSAIDs, or antihistamines, due to cautions from the CDC that doing so could blunt the immune system’s response (and antibody development) or mask an allergic reaction. We waited at least 24 hours before taking any NSAIDs or Tylenol, although I took my normal antihistamines as prescribed.

After our first doses, Spousal Unit had a sore neck and shoulders starting about three hours afterward, and lasting about a day-and-a-half to two days. They also had tingling in their arms and hands for several days. My injection arm was very sore for several days, but I was otherwise fine.

However, as expected due to my health conditions, I had a much stronger reaction to the second dose.

Here’s how I reacted during the first 24 hours after my second dose of the Moderna vaccine:

We received our second doses of the vaccine in the afternoon. Initially, I felt fine, but I became increasingly tired as the day went on. About five hours after receiving the shot, I started having mild intermittent dizziness/vertigo. Eight hours after receiving the shot, I was very tired and went to bed, but I woke up frequently throughout the night due to muscle soreness.

I woke up eight hours later (sixteen hours after receiving the shot) to use the bathroom. I had been noticing a mild to moderate headache during the last few hours of intermittent sleep. I developed mild to moderate chills (shivering and teeth chattering) while using the bathroom, and promptly returned to bed and piled on extra layers of blankets.

Sore from so much lying down, I emerged from my bed blanket cocoon about four hours later (20 hours after receiving the shot). My neck muscles were moderately sore, I was fuzzy-headed, and I still had mild to moderate chills. I created a blanket cocoon for myself on the couch.

About two hours later, I started having nausea. I also had a fever and mild chills, and the dizziness persisted. One hour later (23 hours after receiving the shot), I had a fever of 101.4 degrees, mild chills, persistent dizziness, nausea, and I was very tired and thinking about taking a nap. I drank some green slime and the nausea eased. Twenty four hours after receiving my second dose of the vaccine, the fever, chills, body aches, tiredness, and dizziness persisted.

And here’s how I reacted during the second 24 hours (hours 24-48) after receiving my second dose of the Moderna vaccine:

Twenty-five hours after the injection my pulse was very loud, which made it difficult for me to fall asleep. I slept for about 1.5 hours, shedding blankets one layer at a time as I warmed up. When I woke up (shot + 26.5 hours), my tinnitus was very loud, my blood pressure was 144/94, my pulse was 124, oxygen saturation was 94%. My muscles and connective tissue were stiff and sore, and I was still fuzzy-headed.

Approximately 31 hours after the second injection, I ate some chicken soup for dinner. (I didn’t have the energy to eat anything else.) My temperature was still 101.4. All symptoms persisted.

At bedtime, I took Tylenol and naproxen sodium to help ease symptoms and hopefully get some sleep. I slept eleven hours, and awoke feeling much better. My blood pressure was 128/89, my pulse was 92, my oxygen saturation was 97%, but my temperature was still 101.4. I was not dizzy, was much less fuzzy=headed, and had no nausea. My tinnitus was at its normal volume, and I felt much more normal.

Forty-eight hours after my second dose of the Moderna vaccine, I felt markedly improved. My tinnitus was louder than normal, my blood pressure was 134/96, my pulse was 88, my oxygen saturation was 96%, and my temperature was finally back to normal – 98.6, although I still felt feverish. I was still taking it easy, but I was able to think again.

Bottomline: The day after the vaccine was rough, but I felt much better 48 hours later.

Meanwhile, Spousal Unit, who has a typical immune system, did not have much of a reaction at all to their second dose of the Moderna vaccine. Approximately three hours after the shot, they had a stiff and sore neck and shoulders. About twenty hours later (twenty-three hours post-injection), they had a one degree rise in temperature, stiff and sore neck and shoulders, and they stated that their pain level at the injection site was a three (on a ten point scale). The second dose of the Moderna vaccine did not prevent them from doing anything they normally would.

I was glad that we had frozen meals ahead of time, in preparation for one or both of us not feeling well. I had no interest in eating anything other than juices and soups for forty-eight hours after my second Moderna injection (due to lack of energy and brain power), and it was great knowing we had those in the freezer, and all we had to do was thaw them out. We had frozen other meals as well, but I was not interested in eating anything I had to chew.

The third and fourth nights after my second injection, I had insomnia that kept me up all night. I assume this was due to the raised histamine levels in my body due to mast cell reaction to the perceived threat. It took me several weeks to get back to my normal sleep schedule.

I am relieved to have been able to receive the vaccination. My immune system’s response definitely took me down for a couple of days, but I have had no long-lasting negative effects.

How has your experience been? What did you do/wish you had done to prepare for potential down time?