I've been invited for my vaccine but not sure what I want to do

[annabellacomestotea]

Hello everyone

I've been invited for my vaccine much sooner than I expected. I am a 31 year old woman, I do not work in a public facing capacity and have no health concerns (normal BMI, only health concern of note being diagnosed with PCOS and generalised anxiety disorder, which would have no impact on me being offered the vaccine.)

Although I am of course grateful to have been offered the vaccine, I was hoping to be offered it later as I have had concerns about it.

I am not sure if my concerns are legitimate or the result of absorbing so much mixed messaging online, from friends and family and even news outlets. In real life, some of my friends and family support the vaccine and others are 'wait and see', whilst others are vehemently against.

I have had everything else from yellow fever to rabies vaccinations, but I have concerns about this vaccine, especially as it has been linked (whether factually or not I'm unsure) to infertility. As a 31 year old woman with no pre-existing health conditions, I don't like the idea of taking a vaccine for something unlikely to impact me greatly. I also have never taken the flu jab for the same reason.

Anyone of a similar age group, would you take the vaccine? Do you have any concerns? Are these concerns unfounded, or should I be asking more questions? And if I reject the vaccine now, am I able to take it later on, and how would this work?

Thank you.

Please just go get it, OP. The more people who are vaccinated the better. Those who can, should, so that those who can’t are protected. There’s no link to infertility so far, but we already know the damage Covid can wreak even on young and healthy people. Wishing you all the best.

If in doubt wait. Some of these responses are staggering saying there is no link to infertility. I am of course not saying there is a link but the truth is nobody knows. The long term effects for this vaccine are simply unknown.

But where is the suggestion that it could be? And why infertility? Why should one of the covid vaccines have some long term effect on fertility and how - vaccines only stay in the body for a short time and are just there to provoke an immune response. What is the proposed mechanism? Have any other vaccines, ever, been shown to cause infertility? Why should this one? Why arent people worried about the long term effect on cancer (unknonwn), heart disease (unknown), dementia (unknown), toothaches (unkown), PMT (unknown)? Not that I think there is any really likelyhood but it is equally unknown - as are all things unless you specifically test for them. I just cant get over the illogical thinking of this one and so clearly seeded by people with an anti vaccine agenda.

Sorry, I didn't realise that OP had returned to the thread.

Sorry @annabellacomestotea for derailing your thread, and I wish you well whatever decision you make. I like what you said here:

So, I always want to be careful that I don't blindly follow any advice or opinion, particularly when there is plenty of hysteria, as there seems to be around many things, of which covid is only one. I suffer with anxiety, but I want to try to not be reactionary or fall into either camp, the 'if you don't have it you're responsible for KILLING people!' and 'if you do have it YOU WILL DIE!' - both camps are hysterical and it just causes panic and becomes impossible to understand the truth in the middle.

syncytin-1 is a gene that originally came from a virus and is shared by most primates - whose DNA sequences are 95% plus the same as ours - it's not unusual that a different type of virus might be slightly similar - it's a gene of viral origin. Where is the evidence or suggestion that and covid 19 antibodies react to that protein? Surely that would be very easy to test and disprove as being nowhere near specific enough.

Genetic sequences are one thing and are composed of a limited set of base pairs so often share similarities in small parts of the sequence. The complex, three dimensional interactions in transcription and translation into a protein and the way that folds into a particular shaped protein are vastly more nuanced. Who has suggested that protein might cross-react with a covid vaccine antibody? And anyway that would mean the same thing would happen with naturally induced covid antibodies after someone had covid? Have we seen a massive spike in miscarriages in 2020 due to covid infection or indeed vaccination? I don't see any evidence for that.

If in doubt wait. Some of these responses are staggering saying there is no link to infertility. I am of course not saying there is a link but the truth is nobody knows. The long term effects for this vaccine are simply unknown.

So if we all follow this logic and wait. And no one accepts the vaccine, we run the risk of millions more Covid deaths, millions more deaths from other causes neglected as a result of the health service being overwhelmed. We run the risk of an already on its knees country being bankrupt further, more job losses, more mental health struggles, further lockdowns Indefinitely, no foreign travel, the list goes on...

There's a 10% chance that if you catch covid and survive, you will get Long Covid. I can promise you that being pregnant (even if possible to concieive) with Long Covid would be unbearable, and having a baby or toddler when you have Long Covid would be nigh-on impossible.

This is a known thing. Covid and Long Covid are known things, with known likelihoods. The "possible effects" of the vaccine on fertility are just speculation, and vanishingly small, incredibly unlikely. The odds are not in your favour to be a parent of you don't get vaccinated.

Get vaccinated, OP, as soon as you are invited to do so.

It may prevent you from getting CoVid in pregnancy (which will risk the pregnancy).

Also if you catch covid you will develop the same anti-covid antibodies as the ones from the virus - so any effect on fertility would be the same anyway.

@Bewildered2021

If in doubt wait. Some of these responses are staggering saying there is no link to infertility. I am of course not saying there is a link but the truth is nobody knows. The long term effects for this vaccine are simply unknown.

Yes, they do know. You are spreading yet more misinformation and nonsense with your post, @Bewildered2021! (Very apt user name btw )

there is no "plausible biological mechanism" by which the vaccine could affect your fertility, says Prof Lucy Chappell, a professor in obstetrics at King's College London and spokesperson for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-56012529

Oh so just because the bbc quotes that Professor Chapel says
“Prof Chappell pointed out, there is lots of evidence from other non-live virus vaccines, including the flu jab, that they have no impact on fertility and are completely safe and recommended for use during pregnancy” this translates to the Covid vaccine doesn’t affect fertility...

Hmmmm and I’m spreading misinformation ( the new annoying buzzword ) .

Use your brain lovey the flu vaccine or any other live virus vaccine isn’t an MRNA vaccine. The long term effects of this are unknown at this stage.

The Astra Zeneca vaccine also isn't an mRNA vaccine if you want a more tried abs tested technology

@Bewildered2021

Oh so just because the bbc quotes that Professor Chapel says “Prof Chappell pointed out, there is lots of evidence from other non-live virus vaccines, including the flu jab, that they have no impact on fertility and are completely safe and recommended for use during pregnancy” this translates to the Covid vaccine doesn’t affect fertility...

Hmmmm and I’m spreading misinformation ( the new annoying buzzword ) .

Use your brain lovey the flu vaccine or any other live virus vaccine isn’t an MRNA vaccine. The long term effects of this are unknown at this stage.

No, she said “there is no plausible mechanism by which the vaccine could affect your fertility”

I.e it can’t because there is no means by which it could.

Pcos is a risk category and if combined with anything else would mean an invite for vaccine.

Check with your GP. They’ll be able to tell you your rush factors.

@Newt432 do you have a link for that? I have pcos, under active thyroid and had another endocrine issue which has had surgery but no vax invite

Im bit older than you with it and ive had my jab, booked in for my second.

If in doubt wait. Some of these responses are staggering saying there is no link to infertility. I am of course not saying there is a link but the truth is nobody knows. The long term effects for this vaccine are simply unknown.

Please stop with the scaremongering

I got the invite to but I decided to wait a couple of weeks because Dh will be on annual leave. He can care for the dc if I get one of those short term side effect. I have already had covid so I believe I’m safe to delay it for a while.

No body knows what it could do in the long term, because they haven’t had the time to test it out in the long term.

@Cowmilk

I got the invite to but I decided to wait a couple of weeks because Dh will be on annual leave. He can care for the dc if I get one of those short term side effect. I have already had covid so I believe I’m safe to delay it for a while.

No body knows what it could do in the long term, because they haven’t had the time to test it out in the long term.

Are you isolating?

I only ask because you’ve been given a wonderful offer but you’re waiting a few weeks - during which you could contract again or, worse still, spread to someone else.

Which could have been avoided.

@IdesMarchof

Here are some links - though I think vaccine invite is based on QCovid - so all factors considered - age, gender, area, risk factors.

I didn’t know about it until I checked.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7550902/

bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-020-01697-5

I think always just check with GP. They’ll have your full medical history.

Take the vaccine.

How would you feel if you inadvertently infected someone?

It's not just about you.

No one actually enjoys getting jabbed with a needle, having a sore arm or potentially having side effects.

@Fagey

* No one actually enjoys getting jabbed with a needle,*

I am genuinely going to enjoy getting this jab in the arm with a needle. Won’t be able to wipe the smile off my face!!

[quote Chewit2022]@Fagey

* No one actually enjoys getting jabbed with a needle,*

I am genuinely going to enjoy getting this jab in the arm with a needle. Won’t be able to wipe the smile off my face!![/quote]
I won't enjoy the needle part but I 100% know what you mean.

Dr Edward Morris, president of the Royal college of Obs/Gyny stated:
"There is no biologically plausible mechanism by which current vaccines would cause any impact on women's fertility.”

Professor Lucy Chappell, a consultant obstetrician stated:
"I can see absolutely no basis for concerns about any of the Covid-19 vaccines that are licensed in the UK and fertility.”"
Their opinion should be good enough. END OF!!!!!

It's like saying that a new chocolate bar fresh on the market could potentially cause infertility. Same bonkers logic. NO! The chocolate bar will NOT cause infertility because it's not designed that way. And no other chocolate bars on the market have ever caused infertility before!!!!!

@Fagey

Take the vaccine.

How would you feel if you inadvertently infected someone?

It's not just about you.

No one actually enjoys getting jabbed with a needle, having a sore arm or potentially having side effects.

That doesn't sound like freely given consent. That sounds like coercion.

I’m 45 with underlying health conditions but have no desire to have it yet. I’m not confident because of how it’s been rushed through and we don’t know what the long term effects are. That’s just my personal opinion before anyone starts bashing me for it.