Did our vaccines "work"? Neither hubby nor I had a reaction to the 2 Pfizer shots...

[CTyankee]

I guess if I had pressed down on my arm where the shot went in I would have found some soreness but I didn't bother. We both felt fine, ate and slept well with no undue fatigue.

We might not have been exposed. Hubby didn't go out and when he does now he wears a mask. I only went out to food shop and I observed distancing. We took precautions early.

We are very grateful. I'm just wondering if our seclusion in the very early stages of the disease and our early vaccines spared us. Plus, our state adopted guidelines very early and has been under the fine leadership of our progressive governor, Ned Lamont. Our New Haven has been quite vigilant; we have a great, young mayor, Justin Elicker.

Don't get me wrong. I am grateful we didn't have a reaction. I'm just pondering this.

[Drunken Irishman]

1. If you're older, you're less likely to have a tough reaction.

So that might be why.

The younger people are often the ones getting hit hard by the reaction, tho it has hit older people too... just not as often.

[NJCher]

6. I read that, too

It's kind of counterintuitive, but that's the way it is.

[CTyankee]

10. Yup. Old. That's us.

[MiniMe]

23. I wonder if it has anything to do with the small pox vaccine

I don't remember when they stopped giving them, but I know I had 1, actually 2 and my cousin who is 10 years younger didn't get one. I got the 2nd one because I was traveling overseas. I was a teenager but it was a requirement for wherever we traveled to.

[USALiberal]

2. I had no issues with 1st and 2nd Pfizer shot. Nt

[Croney]

3. My husband and I had exactly the same. We are seniors.

We assume it worked.

[LAS14]

4. Neither hubby (85) nor I (77) had reactions. We're totally confident they worked. nt

[womanofthehills]

24. You should never let your guard down because some people make less antibodies than others

Some make lots and some barely make any.

[LAS14]

45. It's true it's not 100%, but I'm now willing to live with the risk the way...

... I lived with the risk of 1 in 100,000 users of birth control pills getting clots, or the much higher risk of getting the flu after a flu vaccine, or crossing the street, or... or...

[llmart]

47. +1000

That's my attitude exactly. Life can never be without any risk and I refuse to get OCD about this. I'm fully vaccinated and have been for six weeks. I trust it works. When you're our age you could spend the rest of your limited time on this earth worrying about getting one thing or another, but is that any way to live?

We do the best we can with what we know.

[ananda]

5. Acc to an aricle, older people have weaker reactions...

because their immune systems aren't as strong as
those of younger ones.

[hlthe2b]

7. No reason to think it did not. The most rubust response occurs in the younger recipients--

and many of those who previously recovered from COVID. Younger people often mount the most aggressive immune responses which diminish in older people, but that does not mean they will not produce sufficient protective antiboy (as well as some induced T-cell response).

[Freddie]

29. My daughter had COVID last fall and just got the Pfizer shot

She was quite sick for 2 days (she’s 34) so this seems right. Hope she doesn’t get as sick with the 2nd one.

[boston bean]

35. I had covid late last year and got both shots

Moderna

1st was quite bad. High temps and violent shaking chills.
2nd which I received on Sunday did make me sick, but temp was lower, had one episode of chills not as bad, and had headache and body aches. I was fine by Tuesday morning.

My experience with second was a bit easier.

[flying_wahini]

8. All of my friends that got Pfizer shot said the same thing. Little or no reaction.

My husband and I got Moderna and were down with symptoms for 24 hrs about 12 hrs after receiving it.

I know that Moderna has a somewhat higher dose of the goods than Pfizer.

Time will tell.

[5X]

9. You should become aware of assimilation to the borg.

[CTyankee]

12. Yes, we're taking all the precation against that. It's a problem.

[5X]

20. You can't stop it

Alexa and Siri now know everything you do.

[CTyankee]

22. They're grouchy because we are so boring. They left in a huff.

[TeslaNova]

11. I had a reaction to the 1st Pfizer but not the 2nd

Barely even had a sore arm after the 2nd shot.

[bullwinkle428]

16. Same here! 24 hours of fatigue after shot #1, and barely anything noticeable

following shot #2, 2 days ago.

[central scrutinizer]

32. Opposite for me

First shot - arm was a little sore for a few hours. Second shot - arm a lot sorer, lasted three days, slightly elevated temperature, achy. I’m 70.

[whopis01]

38. That was my experience as well n/t

[SoCalNative]

42. Same here

Mild reaction to the first, 2 days after (fatigue, headache, body aches).

Kept waiting for reaction to the second but it never came (I'm 58).

[WhiskeyGrinder]

13. Lack of reaction doesn't mean it's not working.

[womanofthehills]

28. Agree - a reaction can also be allergic, not just that you are making antibodies

Many arm reactions & anaphylexis are thought to be caused by PEG - the vaccine adjuvant.

[Siwsan]

14. On reflection, I'm not sure if I had any reactions, or not, to my 2 Pfizer jabs.

I had very mild, barely even noticeable tenderness at the injection site after the 1st, and none after the 2nd.

I was tired after the 1st one, but I hadn't really slept well, the night before. I had an unusual headache after the 2nd, but really don't know if it was just a weird headache, or an after effect. The only time I've ever really reacted to a vaccination was after my first small pox vaccination when I was an infant. I still have a noticeable scar. After the 2nd, received while in the Navy, I didn't even develop a welt.

Regardless, I'm keeping up with every single precaution because there seems to be more and more reports of some of the new variants 'breaking through' the antibody protection. I expect this will be my routine for the foreseeable future.

[Ocelot II]

15. But did you get a sudden, inexplicable urge to buy Microsoft products?

[CTyankee]

19. No, they missed the boat with me. I have been going through ice cream like crazy.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

46. We're trying to only focus on "bad" reactions.

Ice cream is not a bad reaction, it's a bonus!

[CTyankee]

48. Hey, I gotta blame those extra pounds on SOMEBODY!!!

Otherwise , I'd have to take personal responsibility for my eating too much ice cream....

[Mme. Defarge]

17. The person who administered my second Pfizer shot

expressly told me that not having any reaction did NOT mean I wasn’t protected.

So relax and celebrate your good fortune.

[CTyankee]

26. I'm good. But of course, I'm a worry wart about this stuff...

[Trailrider1951]

18. I had my second Pfizer vaccine on March 28

The only side effect I experienced was a sore arm for a couple of days. The first injection of Pfizer gave me the exact same reaction. The nurse that gave me the second jab asked about side effects I experienced with the first, and recorded my answer. I don't think I was ever exposed to the Covid virus. I was extremely careful, going out to shop for food and to the dentist only, and masking my face with my cotton cloth masks since mid-March, 2020. I've heard that people who have bad side effects with the vaccine may have had Covid with few or no symptoms. We're still learning what's up with this infection.

[John Ludi]

21. The day after my

second Moderna shot I was doing farm work and tossing pallets around. I'm 56. My GF had no reaction either and she's a few years older than me.

[JohnSJ]

25. Depends. If you feel the urge to buy and use Microsoft products, then you can be sure it is working

[CTyankee]

27. Well, I AM trying to finish my book and you'd think this lockdown was perfect for it but

after a while it just made me restless to get out and do something.

[JohnSJ]

37. Everyone reacts differently to the vaccine. I had no adverse side effects from the Pfizer/BionTech

vaccine, both doses, and I feel confident that it has built the proper immune reaction. However, I will still wear my mask in public, and follow appropriate guidelines when out in public for the simple reason that their are variants out there which the vaccine may not be as effective on, and until at least 70% of the population has been vaccinated, and we have some semblance of herd immunity, I don't plan to engage in public with people I don't know without a mask. When new case numbers drop to a very low percentage, that will be what I will use as an indicator.

If one is curious, you can always request an antibody test to see if the vaccine has done its job. I believe that is one measure they use to determine that the current vaccines are at least effective for six months out.

[LiberalFighter]

30. I'm thinking maybe having the measles, shingles, and receiving childhood shots

might have reduced the reactions. But still effective.

[CTyankee]

33. I had all those (most recent is Shingles and I still have Post Herpetic Nerve pain).

[BoomaofBandM]

31. My husband and I are in our early 60's, have had both moderna shots, and no reaction.

Everyone was curious if I would react as I react to so many things.

[Tree Lady]

39. I think everyone is so different

I had big reaction to second Moderna shot and I am 64, but other than sore arm no reactions from both shingles shots and flu shots.

My husband 71 had no reaction to either Moderna shot.

[jimfields33]

34. I got my second Pfizer shot yesterday

A little soreness but nothing else. I consider myself very lucky.

[ProfessorGAC]

36. My Wife Had Next To Nothing

Same with 2 of the guys i play golf with & a few teachers i know.
IIRC, around 25% of Pfizer recipients had little to no side reaction.

[bottomofthehill]

40. The great majority of people have no reaction.

You were not cheated. You are the norm.

[HipChick]

41. Although now apparently I am 5G enabled..

and can talk to Bill Gates directly when I have a blue screen on my PC according to my cousin

[WhiteTara]

43. I think

the weaker the immune system, the fewer the symptoms. The stronger the immune system means more symptoms as the vaccine works into the system. Just anecdotal from observing friends and family.

[fescuerescue]

44. vaccines are like advertising

When they work, you don't know they are working.

[Initech]

49. I got mine on Tuesday. No reaction whatsoever.