Worried.....I have my AZ 1st jab tomorrow

[Lou2284]

Hi I'm 36 and have my first jab booked tomorrow. It's the AZ. I'm really worried. I think I'm going to refuse it. I can imagine afterwards I'd be in a state of worry and am thinking it's not worth it. What are you're opinions ? Would you have the AZ ?

[quote Lou2284]@LesLavandes. Stop being so rude! I am genuinely worried and this place should be a safe space for me to air my worries and ask for advice. If you don't have anything useful to say. Keep quiet![/quote]
Ditto there is no need for rudeness.

I will never understand why some people have to so bloody rude on here.

OP the risk is really, really small of complications. Covid is at a worldwide high right now. So covid isnt going away any time soon. More people globally have it today than any other day before( disclaimer of testing availability and all that of course!)

Write yourself a pro and against list and see if that helps. I have had covid and my first jab so it's easy for me to say, but if I hadn't, I would worry about vaccine availability as really India needs them more than us right now.

Another option is waiting to see how you feel in few more months.

You are at far greater risk of covid, OP. Get vaccinated - if not for your own sake, then for the sake of the people around you.

@Aprilshowersandhail

I am 49 and had it last night.... Just didn't think about it too much!!

That's helpful advice

I’ve mentioned this a few times on here when someone has worried about the AZ jab. It’s your decision & we are lucky to live in a country that allow this freedom of choice - pls don’t just not turn up. That is unfair on the volunteers & employed people working at the centres & others that would be desperate to have it - dont in that respect be selfish.

I’ve had the AZ jab. I have suffered from a blood clot on my brain & 2 lung clots in my medical history unknown reasons. I spoke to the medical professionals to understand the risk of the jab & the risk of covid & clot was higher. The vaccine centre staff also gave me the time to fully understand. I don’t regret getting it & im grateful- yes the voice in the back of head worry’s but I live with the same worry of a clot regardless.

I’d just get it (and indeed I have but I’m a good bit older), do you usually overthink other medical treatment this much?

Look at what’s currently happening in India and be glad you are in a country that is offering you the opportunity to reduce your risk of getting Covid.
I had the AZ vaccine and had no side effects whatsoever.

@MRex

You can easily just ignore a thread like this. Unfortunately there's been a steady stream of similar posts for the past few weeks. People find it harder to avoid when there are multiple posts. Earlier posts got lots of info, reassurance and advice, maybe one of them would help.

Exactly. There have been countless of these threads the last few weeks, it’s no wonder patience is wearing thin.

@RedcurrantPuff

I’d just get it (and indeed I have but I’m a good bit older), do you usually overthink other medical treatment this much?

Oh the old ‘overthinking’ chestnut. People are allowed to have concerns you know.

Why are you so worried? I'm surrounded by people delighted to have had it. I've had it. I'm relieved and awaiting my 2nd.
The risks of blood clots are way higher with the pill and other things

37 and had mine 2 weeks ago. Felt a bit off the next day like I was coming down with something but was fine after that. most of my friends have had AZ and all been absolutely fine

I had my first AZ a while back and I had zero side affects. Even with a history of blood clots I was not put off from having it. You have to think of the big picture and not dwell too much on what may or may not happen.
DH felt quite poorly within a few hours of his first AZ and it was a bit scary listening to him struggling during the night. Next morning he woke up feeling like shit but slowly over the following few days he got better.
We are both still going to have our second hand which will be end of May (him) and early June (me)

Anecdotes aren’t really scientific. Your concerns are not irrational in the slightest as the current data shows.

Please read this 23 April report from European Medicines Agency
www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/chmp-annex/annex-vaxzevria-art53-visual-risk-contextualisation_en.pdf

Attached is graph that I think most relevant. It’s #covid deaths by age group vs blood clot cases. For your age group, it’s 0 Covid death vs 1.8 developing a blood clot case per 100,000 people in a low infection environment (which you have now). So far in U.K., 19% of blood clot cases from AZ vaccine have been fatal (32 deaths of 168 cases). So you are looking at 0 on Covid side, but 0.342 on AZ side for risk of death.

It’s a tiny additional risk, correlates to approximately 1 in a million. But think you should be aware of the facts to date.

Had mine last week (AZ) and felt fine apart from a slightly sore arm.

Frankly, based on the data I was more worried about Covid-19 than the vaccine (any of them).

I understand your concern and am not going to belittle you for it.

All I can say is I'm so relieved to have been vaccinated and I'm actually looking forward to the next one without any apprehension whatsoever.

The whole process was really quick and efficient. As for the actual jab, I hardly felt it at all. I remember saying "is that it" 😂.

Honestly, I think in the long run your anxiety will be less having had the vaccine and reduced Covid-19 risk than the stress of not having it.

Considering the current risk of catching covid in the UK is extremely small and you are in an age group where even the JCVI are still Considering whether to advise against it, I would refuse and see if you can get the Pfizer or moderna one down the line. I'm 36 and I won't be accepting the AZ.

I’m 47. Had my first dose here in Canada last Wednesday. No side effects other than a slightly sore arm.

@PlanDeRaccordement - the facts to date are that the risk of a rare type of clot from the vaccine remains steady and exceedingly low whatever the surrounding rate of covid. I think it likely the chances of dying from the clot would go up if you waited to have your jab until covid infection rates were high and then found that vaccine was still your only choice, as hospitals and doctors would be somewhat harassed and busy. World infection rates are currently high and there is so much competition for vaccines that countries are being unpleasant to each other about it and Canada has decided the AZ vaccine is a good option after all. In a world of time and choice, it is worth waiting in the hope you get an alternative before your country ends up in the shit (again) - but that is just choosing which risk you prefer, not necessarily choosing least risk. This is a pandemic, so everything is risky, especially as lockdowns end and we start to rely solely on vaccines to keep us as safe as possible, and especially in a country whose leadership does not like lockdowns or closed borders.

For those that are waiting to be offered an alternative because cases are low. Cases are low because we’ve been in lockdown. We’ve done very well in vaccinations but if the under 40s start ‘waiting’ for alternatives it is a worry what will happen.

I’m 45. Had mine yesterday and after watching the heartbreaking images coming out of India (all ages affected) I’m so grateful.

@Delatron

So many brand new posters. They don’t get involved in any other discussions. Just how worried they are about AZ. We’re not medical professionals on here. Nobody can help you or tell you what to do. There’s clear info out there about risk and benefit. You need to come to your own conclusion.

What’s the point in all these threads? There’s so many of them. Maybe HQ should make a separate board...

Yes, this. Plus so many first time posters who have had clots/strokes/major side effects, and who respond by posting all about it on a board they’ve never posted on before.

Seems being a mumsnet lurker is a huge, huge risk factor. Someone should research that.

Yes and don’t we know it @PurpleRainDancer since it seems to be every second thread these days. Getting a bit tedious now.

Just wanted to say i'm abit worried about it too. I have just become eligible for it my local centre only do AZ. I swing from seeing the scenes in India and think yes i must do it and then see the stats theres a 1 in 50,000 chance of clot (someone on another thread posted this number so dont know if its realiable) but if it is that number has come down abit and i dont want to be that 1.

Have the vaccine and be grateful, you will be fine!
There are a lot of ignorant people who aren’t having the vaccine because of an inability to understand how risk factors work. They then seek to validate their choice by trying to make other people refuse the vaccine as well!

Oh ffs , a 1 in 50,000 chance!
Do you know how ridiculous you sound?

OP, I qualified for early vaccination through work. Already had my first dose of AZ when blood clot issue was raised. I still had my second vaccine and despite the very small risk, came out feeling relieved I had some protection - I've known quite a few who've had Covid, no one had it mildly.

If you don't take up AZ now, there's no guarantee when you will be offered a different vaccine. Any excess Moderna and Pfizer will go to much younger people. I might be wrong but I think it'll be three months before we have another vaccine, and that could be J&J which also has blood clot risks.

If you look at the TravellingTabby website under the national section you'll see that the majority of new cases are in the 10-39 age groups.

Also, when comparing relative benefits and risks of the AZ vaccine versus risks from covid in each age group, depending on levels of infection in the community, it’s worth remembering the EU charts relate to EU data. UK data on deaths from covid indicates that you are more likely to die of covid here if you get it than most other EU countries, so probably better not to rely on data that is not actually accurate for your country when deciding when the benefits to you personally are no longer obvious enough for you to take a tiny risk.