Covid-19 vaccination experiences

Milo how are you doing now? Did it go away?

 

30 hours out from the Moderna bivalent booster, and no negative side effects yet. Positive side effects have been a boost in energy for most of the day. Hoping the lack of negative side-effects continues, but I know it might too soon for them to have show up yet!

 

When I had Covid in November last year I completely lost my sense of smell and taste. In the weeks and months that followed I had a slight return of both, although some smells and tastes had returned "altered". Toothpaste isn't supposed to taste of fish, for example, although so far this problem has only really obviously affected Colgate.

I had a Pfizer Booster at the end of August and got what felt like a return of Covid that lasted about 3 or 4 days. And my sense of smell and taste have also taken some damage again. One thing I've noticed is that the toothpaste I've been using since giving up Colgate (Kingfisher, fluoride-free, fennel) now tastes slightly of something industrial (metallic dust from a factory floor, perhaps) and mildly unpleasant. It's still usable. But I hope I don't eventually end up losing another toothpaste.

 

A lot of the symptoms faded, thankfully but not totally. I recovered function but tire easily and need to be careful about my energy. I do not regret getting it, and will certainly get the next shot, but would not take the flu shot any time soon (due to the symptoms I had with the latest booster round)

 

My experience is atypical, but if someone found a drug that improved ME as much as some of these Covid inoculations improve mine, we'd be celebrating a major development.

AZ#2 and the Moderna bivalent have both given me a really significant improvement. AZ#1 was a bit too effective, I felt as if I was on a stimulant; there was no improvement from the Pfizer jab. The positive effects only last a few days, of course, but it's a little glimpse of what we'd hope for in a non-curative but still worthwhile medication.

It's marked enough for other people to notice straight away, too. I don't know what's happening or why, but if an inoculation can start to improve fatigue, pain, and cognitive function within hours, you'd think there's hope of eventually finding something able to do the same.

 

You're very lucky that your GP found someone to buy her practice. That isn't happening very often here in BC. Right now doctor's offices aren't even doing waiting lists as there are too many people looking for a GP. I might get lucky when the time comes, but some people are still looking after several years. Apparently some doctors are interviewing new patients first to decide whether or not they want to take them on. Seniors and people with chronic illnesses are being turned away. I don't even know how that is legal.

 

But surely almost all businesses do exactly the same thing - if there is likely to be too much business, to many customers, then they refuse to open in that area, preferring to open in area's with no custom, where people don't want their services/products?

Surely.

That's just the way all businesses work, isn't it?

Or...are there grounds for questioning the sanity of GPs who refuse to open/take over surgeries in areas with demand, for GPs - but of course this doesn't happen, coz the gatekeepers to such evaluations, are GPs, and they don't want the work.

As the man said, possibly, medicine is broken.

 

Seriously? Isn't this some form of discrimination? I mean, I would imagine some GPs glossing over persons with complex illnesses?

 

In the UK in the early 90s I was 'interviewed' by a GP, when I was looking for a better one in my area.

I was told that they, the surgery, wouldn't allow me to register, as the costs of my investigations and treatment would be too high, relative to what the NHS would pay them, and that that was an acceptable thing to do because I was registered with another GP in the area.

Who was so good that I was actively looking for a new GP.

 

We have a 'one issue per visit' problem in Canada's healthcare system. Fist talkers might, just might, sneak in 2 questions.

 

In the UK hitting medical staff is frowned upon, or so the media tells me.

We nominally have, and have had for many years, a 5-10 minute appointment slot, for GPs anyway.

This makes going to see one pointless, at least for an autistic person, often even if it is for a simple one issue matter, many of which they consider not covered by their NHS contract, so won't help with anyway.

For anything medical, where something isn't hanging off, gushing blood (which would probably have stopped by itself after a 4 week long wait to see a GP) it's difficult to make progress in 5-10 minutes.

But hey - they can now see the same number of patients in a day as they used to see in a week, giving them plenty of time for 'golf' the rest of the week (many UK GPs seem to be ultra part time these days - I was shocked to find out how little time the couple in my surgery actually work now).

 

I have one issue its just got 50 symptoms, they definitely can't cope with that!

I tried booking "I think we need an hour, its a complex disease", "sorry we have no double slots available". Just zero provision to even accept such a thing is possible.

 

I've not found that with any of the doctors that I have seen.

 

I'm extremely lucky that my doctor gives me longer appointments. It's a small clinic that's rarely busy. We usually book for 30 minutes and we often go over.

 

You might be surprised at how MUCH they work, it's just not necessarily seeing patients. I had one GP ringing me at nearly 8 pm, as he was finishing up his cases for the day. That's probably 1.5 hours' overtime ("unpaid", with an 8 am start?). Then there's the one day a week they're supposed to spend catching up with their reading and keeping abreast with new issues in medicine. Plus the fact that they aren't GP-ing doesn't necessarily mean they're not working: they could have other posts within the NHS, depending on their specialisms etc.

 

I was double- jabbed on Saturday- Covid booster in one arm and flu jab in the other. It has really thrown me off kilter. I was initially ok and slept fine, but yesterday and today: shivery, cold, sweaty and tearful and upset. I feel very off kilter. This is not something that I have experienced after vaccines before.

I would be interested to know if anyone has had/ is having problems with having two vaccines at once.

 

The Moderna booster by itself was not an easy one for me- Not exactly sure why I had such a response after 3 relatively easy shots before. Take it easy.

 

I received my fifth Moderna vaccine, yesterday. It was a fever filled night. My body is aching so badly I dreamed I was thrown out of a moving car, rolling and tumbling down the highway. Acetaminophen is helping the fever and aches. I have no fever at the moment, however the aching remains strong plus a headache.

Even my heathy sister ran a fever with her latest booster.

Local radio is promoting the booster each day during the noon news.

I’m still wearing my mask.

 

Mr B had his fifth v ( Pfizer) last Saturday. No side effects other than a sore arm 24 hours later. He didn't ask if it was the bivalent v nor was that on the record card just a batch number. Has anyone in UK had the bivalent v? He said there was quite a long queue because the doctor was late arriving but only he and one other wore a mask.

I am beginning to feel more anxious now that I am two vaccines behind and the cold weather is coming so that it's harder to be outside. The choice of almost all people not to wear masks is troubling. There was a tweet about a week ago from a doctor who had been at a training day and had developed covid even though she had been wearing an N95 mask. Almost no one else was, even though they were medics so her conclusion was that protection requires N95s worn by both participants. Do we have any evidence?

I have let my thoughts wander onto having another vaccine even though I have been advised not to because it would be dangerous. I found the MHRA advice that was issued at the end of 2020-
"the MHRA advice remains that individuals should not receive the vaccine if they have a history of allergic reactions to any of the vaccine ingredients or if they experience anaphylaxis after the first dose. " That seems clear.

How life changes. I would have taken any vaccine up until 2021. Now I'm worried about the flu v although I have decided to take it, hopefully. I am wondering about novavax but am not sure if it is available here in UK or if it would be suitable.

I don't know how or if this will ever end. Any views?