Really regretting getting the Covid jab (warning pity party)

[FlemCandango]

I had my COVID vaccination on Saturday. I have had all the available boosters since lockdown as I have had some health issues that put me in a "slightly vulnerable to COVID" category.

Went to local chemist had the jab and a charity shop mooch, then came home all fine. 10-12 hours later I start feeling ropey. I know I might be in for a rough night as I have been known to react badly. So I had violent chills, followed by feverishness, crazy fever dreams, headache untouched by paracetamol, couldn't get out of bed for a wee without help, joint pain, nausea, loss of appetite ... This went on for 24 hours. I was still a wreck on Monday, so day off work, Tuesday tired but felt better and felt normal by the evening. I expected to be back at work today.

Then in the middle of the night, chills again I was shivering violently, headache returned plus sore throat and a cough. Most likely an opportunistic virus 🦠 but I am wondering why I put myself through all this🙄

Not sure if the net benefit outweighs the massively inconvenient time off work and feeling like shit-ness of it all.

I will think hard before taking the next booster if offered. I have the flu jab every year - never any issues with that one.

This! 👏👏

Is offering a hollow defence helpful to anyone? You may as well have just posted ‘thoughts and prayers’.

Can’t say you’ve set yourself up as a white knight particularly effectively. It’s impressive that you’ve convinced yourself though.

That's exactly it. Thanks for such rational posts. And for understanding mine.

No problem at all with supporting those impacted but there has to be accurate data and not wide assumptions (usually on Twitter from those claiming to be an expert but can’t actually read data and analysis it).

The VAERS/Yellow Card Scheme is where people - civilians and doctors - are told to detail vax side effects and injuries. However, it's thought that only 10% of all 'events' are recorded. So be mindful of that when you look.

Then there are papers from the official govt.uk website. These would be somewhat 'quietly' released throughout the pandemic, so not really available to the public but various scientists, medics, statisticians would share the links to these papers on Instagram, which is how I saw them.

Various cardiologists shared the Pfi3er data as each drop was released, which made very interesting reading. To be clear, this isn't 'comment' from them, it's a link to the actual information, so readers can check it out for themselves.

And then there's the ONS, who provide official data for everything; excess deaths for this past two years is through the roof. So then you need to look at what changed between Feb 2021 to now to see such an increase.

Hope this is useful.

I'll never have a covid vaccination again. Really scary side effects, one saw me on a 2ww, id never thought it was connected to the vaccine even though it was kind of loosely connected to a common reported side effect. first q from my consultant (one of the top consultants in the UK for this particular issue) was "have you had a Pfizer vaccine recently? And first 2 were AZ?". I'd had it about 2m earlier.

I haven't felt right since tbh.

Thanks expanding on this a little

Why do you spell Pfizer Pfi3er?

Because of censorship. Any mention of certain words on social media - or sharing of the above official information - those accounts would be restricted, shadow-banned and/or suspended. This is one of the key ways information was hidden. So people got around it by spelling words with numbers, symbols - and sometimes emojis.

A parent at my kids school died of a blood clot confirmed to be a side effect of the Covid jab.
OP trust your own body, yanbu

The number of severe reactions may be small (I do question how small, having met others with this while I was hospitalised and knowing someone who also got it), but there is official information recognising the scale of the injuries:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/myocarditis-and-pericarditis-after-covid-19-vaccination/myocarditis-and-pericarditis-after-covid-19-vaccination-guidance-for-healthcare-professionals

"Myocarditis – a very small number of those with this
condition have been admitted to hospital. In 2 studies from the
US [footnote 1] [footnote 2], significant left ventricular (LV)
fibrosis has been described in a high percentage of those children admitted to hospital, with a small percentage of these having non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (VT)"

Various cardiologists shared the Pfi3er data as each drop was released, which made very interesting reading. To be clear, this isn't 'comment' from them, it's a link to the actual information, so readers can check it out for themselves

that’s unsurprising since since myocarditis is a recognised side effect of the mRNA vaccines . I would expect cardiologists, being the ones who would encounter these patients first, to pick up on this and discuss it within their circles. The scale of the vaccination roll outs skews the frequency of encountering rare side effects.

And then there's the ONS, who provide official data for everything; excess deaths for this past two years is through the roof. So then you need to look at what changed between Feb 2021 to now to see such an increase

Again this is data that isn’t conclusive enough to link to vaccines. There are variables given the shortage of social care and state of the NHS. Waiting lists are appalling and emergency care is often delayed. It’s not unusual to wait 40 mins+ for an ambulance even for life threatening symptoms. Anecdotal, but I was in waiting in A&E and a man bleeding profusely from a wound to his neck was sent to sit and wait. He was only attended to after protests from the other patients.

Veena Raleigh, a senior fellow at the health think tank the King’s Fund, told The BMJ that there had been large numbers of deaths related to flu and covid-19 in December 2022 and January this year, which was influencing the figures.5 “The 2023 figures to date do not compare well with 2019. Mortality to date is about 5.5% higher than it was for the same period in 2019,” she said.
“With 2023 to date, we haven’t had the bounce back that we might have expected once the worst of the pandemic was over. In the first three quarters of 2023 the mortality rate was higher than in many years in the pre-pandemic decade. If we have a good coming winter things could get back to 2019 levels relatively quickly, but it’s unpredictable.
“We need to remember that covid is still here and infections currently are picking up. Hopefully, we won’t see the sort of deaths we’ve seen before, but, that said, fewer people are getting vaccinated against covid https://www.bmj.com/content/383/bmj.p2371

Whatever the cause of awful excess death numbers, it's just not reasonable to expect people to continue to take never ending covid vaccines, particularly when they do not stop infections, herd immunity does not appear to be achievable and people are suffering side effects or harm. And if it's not related to vaccines, it's related to the lockdowns and lack of NHS care/waiting times now. Either way, there has to be a new approach, because what's been done hasn't worked out too well. And like I said, my parents refuse to have any more boosters, they''ve had covid and feel it was not as bad as the vaccine side effects. Anecdote I know.

People take flu vaccines every year though. And they don’t always stop infections.

No, they dont. Bit pointless if you ask me. But flu doesn't shut down economy or ban travel and vaccines are rarely mandated outwith healthcare settings. Different animal really.

No, they dont. Bit pointless if you ask me. But flu doesn't shut down economy or ban travel and vaccines are rarely mandated outwith healthcare settings. Different animal really.

Not where we are now. It's a vaccine offered to older and more at risk groups similar to the flu one. Take it or don't.

Don't understand how people thinking about the vaccine will get anything from a thread like this.

Not where we are now. It's a vaccine offered to older and more at risk groups similar to the flu one

There are a lot of people still being urged to take vaccines. The below is not exhaustive. If the excess deaths we are suffering are linked to vaccines, that's very bad news. And we don't know for a fact yet that they are not. So people are entitled to question and weigh up their decision as per the thread.

People at increased risk from COVID-19 aged 16 years old and overYou may be at increased risk from COVID-19 if you have a health condition, such as:

a long-term lung condition, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma (if you need steroid tablets) or cystic fibrosis
a long-term heart condition, such as congenital heart disease, chronic heart failure or atrial fibrillation
long term kidney disease (CKD) stage 3, 4 or 5

• a severe liver disease, such as cirrhosis. a long-term problem with the brain or nerves, such as epilepsy, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, motor neurone disease, Huntington's disease, myasthenia gravis, or a stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA)
• severe or multiple learning disabilities (or being on the learning disability register), such as Down's syndrome
• diabetes or another hormone disorder, such as Addison's disease
• a weakened immune system, due to a medical treatment (such as steroid medicine, biological therapy, chemotherapy or radiotherapy), a condition (such as leukaemia), or from having an organ or bone marrow transplant
• problems with the spleen, having no spleen or having a condition that can affect the spleen (such as sickle cell disease)
• living with severe obesity (having a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or above)
• a severe mental health condition, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder
• being pregnant (all stages)
• living in a long-stay nursing and residential care home as a younger adult.

This list is a summary and does not cover everything. There are other health conditions and treatments that may mean you're at increased risk from COVID-19.

And we don't know for a fact yet that they are not. So people are entitled to question and weigh up their decision as per the thread.

Yes of course they're entitled.

But I still question what a thread like this achieves. Has it helped OP? ( I mean they did say they'd be making up their own minds )

How can random anecdotal stories help?

Pretty much everything we read on here on any topic is anecdotal though. I do think other people's perspectives and experiences can help people come to a decision on their own personal situation, on many issues not just vaccines. Ultimately we all do our own thing, that's as it should be. But it's good to share I think, after all the op shared her position and fears and asked AIBU.

@spuddel

And like I said, my parents refuse to have any more boosters, they''ve had covid and feel it was not as bad as the vaccine side effects. Anecdote I know.

You do recognise that this is likely because the actual vaccine did its job and reduced the severity of the infection when they did get it? The vaccine side effects - and I'm guessing you're talking about the mild sore arm and perhaps chills variety here - show the immune system is working. It's a good thing. All of these anecdotes here about 'I had a headache afterwards - I'm never having another one!' etc. etc. are misguided. This is what a vaccine is supposed to do.

Well you guess wrong. My dad developed eczema all over so badly he is now on steroids, days after his Moderna (previous three we pfizer). He tears his skin off, is bandaged, can't sleep and the only thing he loved for exercise was golf and is now not fit for it. It's utter and total misery and yes, it's been attributed to the vaccine by dermatology.

You, me, no one can possibly say factually the vaccine reduced the severity. I had no vaccines and covid was mild. Many others in the same situation.

@Jumpingthruhoops

The reactions to my posts tell me that people are unable to think for themselves.

This thread is about the vax injured - I'm frankly amazed that people have seen fit to use this thread to remind people how 'wonderful' the jab is. At best these posts are tone deaf - at worst they're downright bloody offensive.

I absolutely can think for myself, and that is why I am asking you for more information. How are we supposed to find information that you have only dropped a few grim clues might exist? TBH, I have no wish to go into Covid conspiracy-land, so reputable sources would be preferred. You don't appear to know of any, given your attitude. Anyone else would simply share a resource.

And to echo another poster, no-one has stated how wonderful the vaccinations are. They did get us out of pandemic status, though, and I do think we have forgotten just how much the world needed them.

Im sure Gareth Eve will find this hilarious 🙄

@Jumpingthruhoops

The VAERS/Yellow Card Scheme is where people - civilians and doctors - are told to detail vax side effects and injuries. However, it's thought that only 10% of all 'events' are recorded. So be mindful of that when you look.

VAERS/Yellow Card data - particularly VAERS - cannot really be relied upon for accurate data for the above reasons. Anyone can report anything. I could report a sore finger after a vaccination and it would count towards the figures. I doubt the 10% number above - anti-vax groups actively work together to fudge the figures.

Then there are papers from the official govt.uk website. These would be somewhat 'quietly' released throughout the pandemic, so not really available to the public but various scientists, medics, statisticians would share the links to these papers on Instagram, which is how I saw them.

I don't know what you mean by "quietly released" - I don't even live in the UK and I read them as they were released.

Various cardiologists shared the Pfi3er data as each drop was released, which made very interesting reading. To be clear, this isn't 'comment' from them, it's a link to the actual information, so readers can check it out for themselves.

I love how you spell Pfizer "Pfi3er". That's a classic anti-vax group technique to avoid banning. They also call vaccinations 'cupcakes' for the same reason - ie. "We don't believe in cupcakes in this household".

Hope that improves, Spuddel. That's quite rare, too. Did he already have some kind of eczema?

No, no eczema or any skin issues prior Couch. He's 80, it's definitely very odd to develop it at that age out of the blue and just days after a relatively novel new treatment.

The yellow card here in the UK is definitely under-reported. It's been known for years.

Under-reporting Under-reporting has long been the major failing of the Yellow Card scheme and it is estimated that only 10 per cent of serious ADRs and 2-4 per cent of nonserious reactions are reported https://wchh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/psb.405