Did anybody get on better with a different covid vaccine second time round?

[StrongLegs]

Hi,

Sorry this is a bit long.

I wondered if anybody had had the AZ vaccine first time, with severe side effects, and then switched to a different one and got on better next time?

I'm a bit desperate to be vaccinated, as I've had long covid twice, but the first AZ vaccine gave me wild side effects.

First it was epic nausea for two weeks, then very low blood pressure, then my balance went wonky and I haven't been able to drive or cycle for 7 months since then. I also got weird feelings in my head as though the electrics had gone wrong. My head went numb and then I felt like I had a head full of fireworks and had to pace up and down the garden for weeks to cope with terrible anxiety and a feeling as if I was going a bit mad. That went away, thank goodness. Not being able to drive is a real problem as I am meant to be a carer for my parents and I can only get to them by car, so I really would like the dizziness to get better rather than worse. It isn't going away though.

I have figured out that I have iodine deficiency and functional B12 deficiency, as well as being close to having absolute B12 deficiency. It's hard to fix though as I have a lot of problems with food intolerance, and aversion to taste and smell. I have been referred to an NHS dietician but she can't see me until January.

Last time I asked my GP I was not allowed a different brand under government rules and I don't like to ask again as they busy beyond belief and I know they don't want people ringing up about vaccines.

I have a kit to test my covid antibody levels, but I haven't used it yet as the blood drawing place is a drive through and I am too dizzy to drive or be a passenger in a car.

I wondered if anybody might have any good ideas? It feels so pathetic to be not fully vaccinated. But all my family say that it would be madness to have a second vaccine if it makes my head come unhinged, and I haven't yet fully recovered from the last (or from the Delta covid that followed it).

I'm a bit stuck.

Grateful for any ideas. :-)

I would say that side effects like dizziness have also been seen with the mRNA vaccines so
I don’t think switching will help you.
Have you got medication for your dizziness? I had mild dizziness for a few months after my Pfizer. It usually was triggered after eating foods with high histamine content. These also trigger vestibular migraines for me (pre vaccine too). For those I find a travel sickness type anti histamine works well to get rid of severe dizziness.

If you have had covid twice and had long covid twice and reacted to the vaccine I wouldn’t have another dose of I was you. I’d definitely wait to get your b12 levels back to normal first.

Can you not do your own blood draw? The antibody kits often come with a lancet and you prick your finger with it and squeeze out enough blood into a tube.
Sorry you’ve had such a rough time!

Are you taking b12 supplements? You can get versions with methyl b12 which works better for some people.

Might it be better to try to get an antibody test that can be done at home? All you need to do is use a little lancet on your finger and you collect the blood that way. You don’t need to have blood drawn. That’s how I did mine. It was very easy.

I git the Pfizer x 2 and was completely fine. Got the Moderna booster on Monday and felt unwell Tuesday and a not quite right today.

Thank you very much for all of these kind and helpful comments. I really appreciate it.

I am working hard at increasing the B12 in my diet and I get the RDA od B12 nearly every day. Not so successful with iodine yet but working on it.

@JS87 - do you take histamine travel pills long term? I have constant trouble with motion sickness too from watching tv or even if people wiggle their feet within my field of view. It hadn't occurred to me that that could be to do with histamine intolerance.

I find it hard to take pills of any kind as I react to the packing agent or something in them and that causes nausea. I used to take histamine travel pills, and they gave me about 8h hours off from nausea symptoms, but the reaction to the packing agent meant that I got two hours of nausea each time I took the pills, which kind of defeated the purpose. This was 15 years ago too, when I was really in quite sparkling health!

My diet is already extremely low histamine, although I did switch recently from eating cabbage to spinach, because I learned that cabbage contains goitrogens which might be contributing to my low t4. (thyroid) I'm working really hard to get more iodine in my diet, but it is struggle.

I have tried those finger prick tests, but I couldn't figure out how to get enough blood out for the sample. My covid antibody one definitely needs a needle.

No I just take them when I’m too dizzy to get out of bed. I just wondered if it might help your system.
I’d definitely try a b12 supplement and drop the spinach for a while.

Thanks JS87.

The supplement side is complicated. I can't take them because of wild side effects, but another mumsnetter has explained to me how to deal with that. Apparently I need to get a lot of different nutrients lined up all at the same time because they all work together in a biochemical pathway. It's difficult though because I have so many food intolerances. I am working on it though. It's all explained on this website: b12oils.com/rnb.htm

I figured out that I can get my RDS of B12 every day from turkey, so that is good. I just haven't worked out iodine yet. Iodine is harder.

I just signed up for private B12 and T4 tests to be done at home. This is new!

I had bad side effects with first AZ (not as bad as you but felt really ill for over a week, dizzy, nausea, headache, rashes) second one was ok as I took an antihistamine half an hour before, but felt tired and achey for awhile. Very sore at injection nsite with both. For the booster I had Pfizer (also with an antihistamine) and no side effects whatsoever except very mildly sore arm.

@Sonex that's good to know that it gets better. Maybe I should try taking antihistamines and see if I get on with them. I will put that on the list. :-)

I had az for my first, felt rough for a day or two but arm was terribly sore, ended up ha having a very angry red arm pretty much from shoulder to elbow.
Have health anxiety and couldn't face az again so I went for a pfeizer yesterday with a note from doctor.
So far I'm 29 hours later and felt a little tired and achey until this morning. Arm is still quite sore from shoulder to wrists oddly but other than that nothing else. Trying to keep my anxiety under control is another thing entirely.

The pharmacist who arranged this vaccine for me was brilliant and said it's completely safe, even for kids over 12 and pregnant women.

I'd push for a different one with the help of your gp.

@Cornishqween thanks, that's really good to know. I completely understand what you mean about the anxiety. It's proper work, keeping it under control isn't it? I hope you have a lovely easy ride with this vaccine.

The anxiety is worse than the actual jab for me I try to avoid google at all costs.
Hope you can get a vaccine soon (whichever one) and find it easier. It's worth it for the peace of mind later on once the side effects are gone

Yes I know what you mean. It's a complicated business walking the line between vaccine side effects and psychosomatic effects. Life is so much nicer now that we are allowed to admit that the psychosomatic effects are there and that they are normal at least.