Whooping Cough vaccine - happy stories from people who had it at the beginning please!

[MrsAnxiety1]

Hi all,

I'm due my whooping cough vaccine today and I'm scared - not because of the needles or pain etc, but just because it's a relatively new vaccine for pregnant women and it can cause fever (which could cause future problems).

I've read all the studies on safety, so am aware that it is largely safe, but I'd LOVE to hear from some women who have now had their babies, as well as pregnant women, who can tell me what to expect afterwards.

Is fever common? Arm pain is fine, but what about the other symptoms like vomiting, diarrhoea, headaches etc?

Just a bit of hand-holding in advance please :) Thanks!

I had it with DS 2 who is now 9 months. Not a single problem or side effect for either of us

I did get vomiting for 12 hours afterwards but research suggested it's very unlikely to be connected. Read nhs website for reassurance.

I had it when pregnant. DS is 10 months. Both of us are fine.

I had it when I was pregnant with DD in 2012, she's 2.3years old now and seems to have suffered no I'll effect.

I had a dead arm and a bit of redness for a few days but fine otherwise.

I don't think it's a new vaccine. Isn't it given to pregnant women overseas?

And it's the same one for 2 months old. If their tiny bodies can take it so can you.

I didn't have any side effects at a.

I think both the U.S. and Australia are giving it for example.

I had mine when pregnant and my baby is now a happy, healthy 9 month old. Whooping cough is really dangerous for newborns. Life threatening.

I think the midwife told me that it's the same jab as the 4 in 1 preschool booster, because they just don't have one that has whooping cough alone.

I had a bit of a sore arm for a couple of days, that was it. DD is now 17 months and fit as a fiddle!

Thanks all for the reassurance, it's good to know that apart from the arm thing, all was okay.

Re: it being a 'new' vaccine, I meant that it hadn't been used for 20-odd years etc, just for 3, so longer-term side-effects hadn't been evaluated :)

I had it in my last pregnancy when they'd just introduced it - no side effects for either me or my daughter (now 2 1/2) :)

Where have you heard it could give you a fever or other symptoms? It's not a live vaccine so it can't as far as I am aware....

I had mine at about 28w (i think) Didnt get any side effects/ DS is 10m and perfect

I had it twice - DD1 is 2.5 and DD2 is 6 months. Neither seem to have had any ill effects and I didn't have any real pain or problems either time.

MissTwister the side-effects list comes from the Oxford Vaccine Group (university of Oxford) website and says:

Side effects in adults:

Very common side effects (affecting more than 1 in 10 people):

redness, pain and swelling at the injection site
headache
tiredness
generally feeling unwell

Common side effects (between 1 in 100 and 1 in 10 people):

fever (up to 39°)
bruising, itching, warmth, numbness or a lump at the injection site
stomach pain, feeling sick or being sick

Less common side effects (between 1 in 1000 and 1 in 100 people):

fever (over 39°)
swelling of the vaccinated limb
chills, pain, itching, dizziness or sleepiness
joint or muscle pain
lack of appetite
numb or tingling hands or feet
flu-like symptoms
cold sores
swollen glands
asthma

www.ovg.ox.ac.uk/pertussis-vaccine-in-pregnancy

AFAIK anything that provides a 'challenge' to your immune system, so any vaccine or illness, can give you a fever as that just shows your immune system is working/fighting it. I have got some paracetamol in just in case :)

Gosh - well I had no side effects, not even a painful arm!

When it was first offered I was 37 weeks pregnant and was down the surgery like a (waddling) ferret down a pair of trousers. Whooping cough kills newborns. The vaccine couldn't have been less trouble. I forgot I'd had it the next day until I saw the little plaster...

That's good to hear - I'm really glad it's not so bad, I'm just hoping that I'm one of the ones who doesn't end up feeling crappy :) crosses fingers

The only reason I didn't have it is that I'd had whooping cough very recently. Whooping cough is so so awful. It frightened me, and it went on and on and on. I can't imagine how terrifying it would be for a baby to get it.

I would gladly have all those side effects for 2 weeks rather than whooping cough for 2 days.

Get the vaccine!

Thanks Monstrous, I am definitely getting it, just wanted some reassurance first :)

I nearly died of whooping cough when I was six, so gladly had the vaccine. Me and DD (5) were and are both fine. no effects at all as far as I can remember.

I had it at 30 weeks and im now 34w. It was a no brainer for me, it's so easy, my arm hurt overnight so I slept on the other side, that was all. Worth the peace of mind to me, as someone else wrote I was told it was a preschool booster so very mild shot.

I'm going to buck the trend here! I reacted to the jab, sickness, fever and severe headache for around 3 days afterwards.

I had it with Dd who is a very healthy nearly two year old and had it last week again for dc2. No side effects. There is nothing on that list of side effects that even comes close to a newborn getting whooping cough.

Thanks all for the reassurance and also to Jo for your experience (it sounds awful, fingers-crossed I'm not going to get that!) :)

They do give it in the US now (or at least my OB did). I don't remember getting it when I was pregnant with DD in 2012. I had it, and I had redness and swelling for a while afterward. When that started to go away, it itched, but that was all the symptoms I had.