The day after


I had my shot of the Pfizer vaccine yesterday. Today, I’m feeling it: my arm is sore, my limbs in general feel like lead, and my brain seems to be running at half speed. This must be the possible lethargy they warned us about. It’s nothing too bad, and even if I’d known the specific effect ahead of time, it wouldn’t have dissuaded me in the slightest.

Fortunately, as an early anniversary gift, I bought us a larger coffee maker, which helps a little. Also, it’s not as if professoring takes much brain power, right?

Comments

  1. stwriley says

    My wife had the same effect from her Pfizer vaccine on Thursday. I had my first shot two weeks ago (with the Moderna vaccine) and had no side effects at all, not even a sore arm. I’m due back for the second shot two weeks from today and don’t expect I’ll get off as easy the next time. Second dose is supposed to be the one that really kicks in the immune response, so I’m sure I’ll be paying back my luck from the first dose. I still await it with eager anticipation.

  2. kurt1 says

    My partner got the first Astra-Zeneca shot on tuesday. At first she thought everything was fine, but in the evening she got really sick, fever and everything. Had to stay in bed the next day and was still pretty tired on thursday. Still better then getting Covid.

  3. AstroLad says

    I had my first Pfizer shot five weeks ago. Localized sore arm for one day, then one day kind of lethargic, and a few days of odd intestinal problems. Those last two might just have been coincidental. Virtually no reaction to the second shot three weeks later. I had to force my arm straight up to even notice what little soreness there was. My wife just had a sore arm after both of hers, the second a little more so. A much younger nurse at the site –we are both over 70– said she had little reaction to Pfizer.

    Oh, and I still don’t like Bill Gates, so the microchip must not be working.

  4. says

    I got the first Pfizer shot a week and a half ago, and I had no side effects whatever. Not even the dread soreness at the injection site. I think only about 20% of people feel substantially ill.

  5. kome says

    After my first Pfizer shot – on Tuesday – I had such arm soreness that it prevented me from getting any sleep. On Wednesday, my blood stream was effectively a coffee stream because of how much I had to brew to keep me going. It sucked, but I am glad that was the only effect. I’m not looking forward to the day after the second shot, no matter how much I am looking forward to the day after that.

  6. Mark Smith says

    I heard a theory that people who have had covid tolerate the vaccine better. Guess I’ll have a chance to test that. I tested positive in January, got my first dose of Moderna yesterday, and get my second dose in a few weeks. So far the soreness hasn’t been enough to keep me awake, and I’m a light sleeper.

  7. blogokvetsch says

    I too had my second Pfizer vaccination yesterday. So far, just a mild tenderness at the injection site. First shot was similar. Hoping this is the worst of it. Regardless of any later ill effects, I’m happy to have completed the series.

  8. PaulBC says

    I don’t recall having a vaccine reaction worse than a stiff arm for a day, so I hope it’s no worse. I have no idea when I’ll be eligible. I’m 55 and not “essential.” Maybe just when it is generally available.

  9. whheydt says

    Re: stwriley @ #2…
    Same here for us, including who got which vaccine and, for me, the timing.

  10. robert79 says

    Regarding the larger coffee maker, one of the best purchases I’d done just pre-covid was an espresso machine (aka a small coffee maker), I don’t miss the coffee at work AT ALL.

    Walking to the kitchen, grinding beans, having my espresso machine go gurgle gurgle, is often exactly the little break I need to get back to work.

  11. DonDueed says

    My brother and his wife got the second dose of Moderna yesterday, and got hammered today — body aches, joint pain, chills and headache. The first dose they had only mild arm pain.

    Seems like the second dose is where the most side effects are happening. Makes me glad I got J&J. Still, as brotherDueed says, the protection is totally worth it.

  12. says

    Got mine Thurs. Was told it would be the Pfizer one, but when I got there it was J&J. About eight hrs. post-injection I noticed slight muscle soreness when I moved my arm. Went to sleep & felt just fine Friday.

  13. chuckonpiggott says

    I had my first Pfizer yesterday. Same thing here. Arm hurts and I’m a little lethargic.
    Was at my mother in law’s earlier and she said “you don’t feel good do you?” Said I looked like I was worn out.
    MiL has here second one this Tuesday, we’ll see how it affects her. She is 90+.

  14. DanDare says

    We in Oz are behind but well isolated, so no injection yet. Already feeling the aches and pains though. The vaccines must have thiotiomoline in them.

  15. Callinectes says

    I’d have expected women to experience stronger side effects overall because their immune system is often more robust than men’s. On the other hand Mary seems to luck out every time, especially when contrasted with PZ, so this outcome fits a different curve very well.

  16. unclefrogy says

    that cartoon owes its existence partly to Edward Gorey. dark humor indeed
    uncle frogy

  17. vairitas says

    I had no reaction to the 1st moderna vaccine but the second one really laid me low, I had chills and was achy all over

  18. Kagehi says

    Got the first Moderna one recently. Joked when I got there that I was there get shot, then the next day I was joking, “Now I need to go back to get the bullet removed.” Going to love getting the second one, especially given that I have a dental appointment the next day… lol

  19. says

    I’m somehow still not in the prioritized grouping, despite my several-inch-thick medical records and chronic conditions.

    Feeling like society outright hates disabled people.

  20. tacitus says

    My first Pfizer jab was about the same as the usual flu shot — a sore upper arm. The first dose of the new shingles vaccine was worse.

    Feeling like society outright hates disabled people.

    In this case, just the total lack of a modern functional national healthcare system, which hits even harder if you live in a red state. The Biden administration is probably doing the best thing they can under the circumstances — flooding the country with as many vaccine doses as possible as quickly as possible to get supply up to the point where it exceeds demand.

  21. Rich Woods says

    @AstroLad #4:

    Oh, and I still don’t like Bill Gates, so the microchip must not be working.

    I checked your microchip: it’s showing a BSOD.

  22. leophoreo says

    My legs have felt like jelly(jello to USA dwellers) on and off since my Pfizer yesterday and the beloved one she has had mild flu like symptoms off and on but otherwise OK. The microchips are working as well as can be expected from microsoft so no danger of them passing our secrets on.

  23. slithey tove (twas brillig (stevem)) says

    the first half of the Pfizer went without any kind of effect at all. The second half, applied 2 wks later on schedule, had no effects the first day. The next day had chills, reduced appetite, and frequent nodding off for a moment. The injection site swelled into a bump like a mosquito bite, with a little pain from a finger press. A week later the injection site is still a little itchy. NBD

  24. thompjs says

    After my first Pfizer I had to take long nap felt tired a few hours then went for hour bike ride

    Second one had slight fever for a few hours
    That I only noticed when I touched my face, no chills