Yes, I’ve got all my shots. In the month of September, I received not one, not two, but THREE vaccines.
1. The influenza shot.- “The best time to get a flu vaccine — which reduces the risk of serious flu-related illness, hospitalization or death — is any time between September and the end of October, the CDC suggests.”
I’ve been getting the shot every year for over a decade, after getting the flu kept me in bed for about a week.
2. The Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) shot. As I noted here, I had stepped on a nail in 2000 in my then-new backyard and got my first shot probably in decades. I got another one in 2010. As my old pal, Diane suggested, “Sometime (around 2000) pertussis was re-instituted in the ‘adult’ Td…” Pertussis is also known as whooping cough.
But I didn’t get the shot in 2020 because my doctor, who I had seen only once that year, for my physical in September, didn’t want to subject me to two sore arms. This year, I was given a choice; two sore arms now, or come back later. I opted for the former. And it wasn’t bad at all.
Booster
3. A third “booster” dose of the Pzifer vaccine
I had briefly struggled with whether I, as an entitled American who can readily receive the shot, should get a third dose. Much of the world hasn’t been able to get any vaccine.
The conversation in my head sounded rather like when I was a little kid and told to eat the beets (canned beets were AWFUL). Some parents, I don’t think mine, would say, “Eat these because there are people in China who are starving.” And the kids’ retort would suggest that they’d gladly send their veggies to Peking.
Of course, that wasn’t and isn’t physically possible. The current administration is dedicated to buying and sending vaccines abroad. But as this CBS News story about Lesotho notes, “Battling COVID in Africa takes more than vaccines. It takes ‘flying doctors,’ and even they need help.” If I thought my third shot was taking away someone else’s first shot, I would have gladly forgone it.
Musing
Ultimately, I decided to get the extra dose because of the news that the Pfizer vaccine, which I had received in March, appears to be less effective over time than the Moderna. And I’m over 65 and overweight, plus over 700,000 Americans have died of the disease, so that’s an affirmative.
I received my first two doses at a CVS about a mile from my house. This time, I went on the CVS website and found I could walk to my local pharmacy 0.3 of a mile away. They wanted a little more info this time, such as both my Medicare and my Rx insurance numbers, and telling of my reaction to the previous shots. But the process was not onerous.
No reaction to the third shot, other than a little soreness at the injection site, same as the second dose.
Yeah, I’ve had the booster discussion with people. I want the booster (even more now that reports coming out about how a third dose gives you even amazingly better resistance) but not at the cost of someone getting their FIRST shot somewhere else in the world.
Apparently it wouldn’t work that way. So as soon as I can make it work (as soon as it’s open to my age class – I’m 52 and fundamentally healthy but overweight and do have ashtma- I’m getting it). I also realized that if I can get the booster before the start of next semester, it seems likely – barring some horrific NEW variant (which is always possible), that’s probably the “off ramp” for me to decide “okay, I no longer need to mask up in class.” I will leave the option open to mask if I think I have a cold (that should be a thing now I think) or if a student e-mails me and says they would be more comfortable if I masked (I have occasionally had students with autoimmune issues)
I had a breakthrough “scare” this week – caught a bad cold, thought I had the ‘rona. Tested negative and am on the mend, but yeah, I don’t like that new worry
Can appreciation your concern of others not being able to get their 1st shot while getting your booster. Yes, the world needs to figure out how to help everyone, but I am glad you are taking care of yourself and had no negative reaction except a sore arm. As you know, they recommend drinking lots of water and taking Tylenol for any discomfort. Stay safe and stay well. Love you.