Alternatives to AstraZeneca vaccine for under 40s “will be considered” amid rise in blood clots Thread 3

[Whichjab]

New thread as the MRHA report is out today.

Note this is not an anti vaccination thread.

[quote Olliphant]@grellbunt. Am in the same boat. Just got refused a pfizer today...am going to try for a letter from my doctor this week. Why are the staff at the centres such fierce gatekeepers? Surely we should get the vaccine before a 20 year old who will not even notice they have corona?! Gads.[/quote]
Dr said they couldn't influence the choice...just saying

@Grellbunt yes, I fear that my doctor will not give me a letter. I went recently to see her for an unrelated reason and explained that I can't access the Pfizer and she was visibly angry on my behalf. If this extends to a letter I have to hope and cross my fingers. Otherwise I will not be vaccinated...I have no ideas what to do. It is age discrimination. It makes you feel so powerless doesn't it.

It seems like a postcode lottery with getting a different jab, it's disgusting.

Annoying for you as Pfizer is available for walk ins where I am (SE England).

Come have a trip to the seaside!

Hhmm I wonder if they'd turn you away at a walk in if you said you was on holiday. A night in a hotel @Grellbunt? We could all chip in for your air bnb 😂

Months ago when I first tried talking on MN about not wanting AZ it was very difficult. To the point that I was told unsympathetically to see my GP and get an alternative due to anxiety and 'mental illness'. I was so angry that it was suggested that I should have that on my records for life just because I wanted a safer vaccine. I'm so angry for you @Grellbunt because you shouldn't have to travel to another part of the UK.

And for most of us this decision isn't selfish. I'm at peace with my mortality. But I have relatives who depend on me and that was my motivation to seek an alternative. We the over 40s are the unpaid carers. For little ones and the elderly. They've treated us appallingly.

Yes @AppleJane this is how I feel. I have people who reply on me. I feel really alone, can't tell my friends my fears. Scotland is not a great place to be at the moment.

@Tauranga I really feel for you all in Scotland. I managed to get Pfizer due mainly to luck while ringing round and I can't believe next week I'm due my second while people on this thread are still struggling to get their first. I'm gutted for you.

Well, exactly. Kids and elders. Who would do it if I was gone or ended up brain damaged? I've had covid, it didn't even put me in bed. I'm not scared of covid.

In London I don’t think it’s a problem to go to a walk- in -centre even if you’re over 40 for your first dose of Pfizer (unless it’s very busy and they have to choose between people).
I just had my second dose at a walk- in- centre and they said the cases are on the rise in London and that there will be more and more walk-in-centers in London because of that. They even told me to spread the word so more people would come in.

Feel so sorry for everyone in Scotland , I do think the longer you wait the more likely you are to get a choice . Especially if they approve Novavax.

Just wanted to say that everyone on this thread seem so nice and helpful ❤️ I was on another thread about Guys hospital and that’s how I managed to get Pfizer even if I’m over 40. That was also a lovely thread . People even asked the vaccinators when they went what vaccine they were likely to use that week just to help strangers on Mumsnet ❤️

So my conclusion is that women who have doubts about AZ are all very clever, kind and care about other people 😉

I hope they will ban AZ once everyone’s been offered two doses . That would be the right thing to do, at least until they know who’s at risk of VITT and what’s causing it.

Best of luck everyone 😘

I saw on BBC they have started AZ trials for the new S African variant vaccine. Have they removed the rumoured clotting preservatives or cause? The article didn’t mention it. Fuck that!!!!

Any updates on the Pfizer / myocarditis link? Last I heard there were over 1000 cases in the USA but I’ve not seen much from the U.K. It seems to affect young males more, so I suppose we might see a few incidences in the coming weeks. It’s made me have doubts about my son being vaccinated.

@Olliphant sorry to hear you weren't allowed to have Pfizer. It's really so hard for all those of us who are in Scotland and seem to be totally stuck. I can't remember now who posted that further up but I had several people tell me to make it a mental health issue, which I did not want, but interestingly enough I didn't even have to suggest that, my GP more or less suggested herself my reasoning around AZ meant I clearly had 'issues' that needed fixing with medication for anxiety and all my nonsense attitude would disappear.

Well if Matt Hancock has has anything to do with deciding on vaccine allocation then it all makes sense...

@Jabbinell

I saw on BBC they have started AZ trials for the new S African variant vaccine. Have they removed the rumoured clotting preservatives or cause? The article didn’t mention it. Fuck that!!!!

They haven’t. They say they want to identify what makes some people susceptible rather than changing their vaccine, which seemed like a shitty attitude to me. Blame the end user!

@LondonAnnie

In London I don’t think it’s a problem to go to a walk- in -centre even if you’re over 40 for your first dose of Pfizer (unless it’s very busy and they have to choose between people). I just had my second dose at a walk- in- centre and they said the cases are on the rise in London and that there will be more and more walk-in-centers in London because of that. They even told me to spread the word so more people would come in.

Feel so sorry for everyone in Scotland , I do think the longer you wait the more likely you are to get a choice . Especially if they approve Novavax.

Just wanted to say that everyone on this thread seem so nice and helpful ❤️ I was on another thread about Guys hospital and that’s how I managed to get Pfizer even if I’m over 40. That was also a lovely thread . People even asked the vaccinators when they went what vaccine they were likely to use that week just to help strangers on Mumsnet ❤️

So my conclusion is that women who have doubts about AZ are all very clever, kind and care about other people 😉

I hope they will ban AZ once everyone’s been offered two doses . That would be the right thing to do, at least until they know who’s at risk of VITT and what’s causing it.

Best of luck everyone 😘

I agree. These have been such constructive threads. 💜 to everyone.

my GP more or less suggested herself my reasoning around AZ meant I clearly had 'issues' that needed fixing with medication for anxiety and all my nonsense attitude would disappear.

@treestump44 am I understanding you correctly that your GP wanted you to have medication (such as antidepressants) because you didn't want AZ?? That's the most shocking thing I've heard to date!!

@AppleJane

my GP more or less suggested herself my reasoning around AZ meant I clearly had 'issues' that needed fixing with medication for anxiety and all my nonsense attitude would disappear.

@treestump44 am I understanding you correctly that your GP wanted you to have medication (such as antidepressants) because you didn't want AZ?? That's the most shocking thing I've heard to date!!

That doesn't surprise me at all

My GP wanted me to take ADs because I was having specific issues on certain days of the month. I went to ask if they knew anything about hormonal swings and ways to make them less difficult. He said GPs "don't really have anything for hormones" but suggested I could just take the ADs that week. Obviously I walked out in disgust.

Here in Ireland the government is putting pressure on NIAC to lift the age restriction on AZ, so that it can be offered to people in their 20s and 30s. The very groups most at risk of clots.

If it's opt-in that's fine, but I hope young people will be able to wait for Pfizer or Moderna if they so wish. I don't think our government will want to offer a choice though. I hope NIAC stand their ground.

@AppleJane Yup you got that right, that is what happened. And that was after I had reminded the GP I was by education a scientist who can definitely interpret data and make informed decisions.

Wow that’s shocking @treestump44

@Grellbunt i had the same (with pmdd) though they did work when I took them. Women’s health is certainly bottom of the pile.

[quote treestump44]@AppleJane Yup you got that right, that is what happened. And that was after I had reminded the GP I was by education a scientist who can definitely interpret data and make informed decisions.[/quote]

Bloody hell. That's even worse!

@Grellbunt have you tried evening primrose oil and lemon balm for those days? Lemon balm is good for insomnia but if you take it with L-Theanine in the day time it's calming without being sleepy

Docs aren't great with food allergies / IBS either. All they seem to be able to treat are conditions they can cut out or medicate. Food nutrition makes up a very tiny percentage of their training. It's all back to front.

@penni00 did you have your second vaccine in the end? I am due mine next Sunday but still suffering from pins and needles/tingling/burning sensation and muscle twitching from first. Really don't know what to do.I was thinking about asking GP for a different vaccine for second but she may refuse.

Hi, no I haven’t had the second vaccination. I am still tingling. I have been offered the chance to get a Pfizer instead but I have been delving and have come across people who have tingling from the Pfizer too. Some have seen neurologists - sone neurologists and some GPs ( but not all) are saying not to have another dose whilst still tingling. The tingling I think is sign of an over inflammatory response, where antibodies are affecting the nerves. My main concern is Guillain Barre syndrome and other similar syndromes. Was your first dose AZ?

@Tittlemouse1212
See above post also.
I had tingling on face and left hand from the start, but whilst head and eye issues subsided, the tingling increased and spread. It is like electric currents running through my feet, legs and body, varying in intensity at different times of the day. My left hand fingers are constantly like it from right after the jab but that is manageable but the widespread tingling is more of a problem. My legs are v slightly wobbly and my knee telexes at one point were not working at all but are working slightly at mo . As above post I am scared of another dose pushing me into a GBS type thing but also desperately want my Covid protection.