Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Vaccinated!

I received my second dose of the COVID vaccination on Monday. There are many downsides to working in prisons, but we were in the top tier for vaccinations and I am so, so grateful that I was able to get it. I'll feel better once my mom, C, and the kids have it, but we're getting closer. 

My first shot was ridiculously uneventful. I was one of the first in our vaccine clinic and the nurse administering it seemed a little nervous even. She was super chatty and kept reassuring me that it was "perfectly safe," which has the opposite effect if the patient has said that they're not nervous, BTW. Then she literally SHOOK as she aimed the needle at my arm (which I had to pull through my neckhole, at work, in prison, because they administer it so high on the arm).  Then she slapped a Wonder Woman band-aid on and sent me on my way. I had no side effects, leading me to wonder if she'd actually even given me the shot. I even checked my sweater to make sure she hadn't missed (she didn't).

I received the Moderna vaccine, so four weeks later I was scheduled for my second shot. As the day drew near I started to actually realize the implications of the vaccine. Even more dramatically, we had a scare last week when Eli turned down tortellini (his favorite food ever) and said that his legs and arms felt "heavy, but light. Just weird." I scheduled him for a COVID test even though I was sure that we were being overly cautious. The next morning, as suspected, he was totally fine but we still had him tested and quarantined until we got the results. I just kept thinking, "We're so close." Luckily his test came back negative and we all got a little reminder that we still have to be vigilant about masks and hand sanitizer. 

I got my second shot on Monday. It was completely and utterly unremarkable. I remembered to wear an appropriate shirt. My nurse didn't shake. This time though the shot hurt so I had no doubt that I got it. My arm immediately became sore and throughout the day I started to feel "off." I was texting with friends to check in and we all had similar responses. That continued into the evening. Near bedtime is when it really ramped up and the flu-like stuff began. I alternated between adding more and more layers because I was freezing to shucking them all and contemplating sleeping outside. I slept fitfully both because of the fever and because of the muscle aches. 

In the morning I took my temperature (we get temp checked on the way into work and turned away if it's high) and was surprised by the 102 reading. Knowing I couldn't go to work even if I wanted to, I went back to bed and slept on and off, (interspersed with episodes of Bridgerton, so now I'm obsessed), for the rest of the day. I started to feel better towards evening and this morning it was as if the whole thing never happened. 

So now I wait 10 days and I will officially be 95% invincible! It looks like my mom will be able to get her first shot in the next couple of weeks, with C right behind her as an educational worker. I'm still trying to get Eli into a clinical trial for adolescents so we can get the kids closer to getting their vaccines too. I am so, so ready and I am so, so grateful for our current administration that seems to understand the urgency and need for science and proactive action. F 45 and his imbecilic optimism. 

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