Side Effects from COVID-19 Vaccine Dose may be due to PRIOR COVID
May 4, 2021 2:38 PM Subscribe
(Miami Herald) A small non-peer-reviewed study in February found that 231 people with Pfizer or Moderna virus experienced side effects such as fatigue, headache, chills and fever, and so on, 83 had been previously diagnosed with coronavirus.
Some scientists speculated that to those people, their first vaccine shot may be effectively their "second" shot, as most people suffer a worse reaction after their SECOND shot, not their first.
This post was deleted for the following reason: I think it'd be better for a post about something like to be more framed around, and showing the vetting of, specific research than working off a short pop science article. -- cortex
I had a pretty nasty reaction to my first COVID shot, and also came down with an appalling, high-fever, flu-type illness last January, just before COVID was supposedly circulating in the UK. I've never been antibody tested. Reading this means that getting vaccinated has now heightened my suspicion that I might have been an early COVID case as well as having made it impossible for me to ever find out.
Probably still worth it on balance.
posted by howfar at 3:06 PM on May 4, 2021
Probably still worth it on balance.
posted by howfar at 3:06 PM on May 4, 2021
add me to the list.. I wondered if my first AZ shot was coming too close on the heels of recovering from the illness? but if this information holds up, it correlates to my experience also: no effect the day I got the shot, then acute effects that kicked in, in bed that night starting around midnight, and slept the entire Saturday
posted by elkevelvet at 3:09 PM on May 4, 2021
posted by elkevelvet at 3:09 PM on May 4, 2021
This was a work colleague's experience; they had a 105 degree fever for two days after the second shot. They're fine now. They also had Covid early on, and this was precisely their theory.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:14 PM on May 4, 2021
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 3:14 PM on May 4, 2021
Daughter had COVID, first vaccine shot kicked her ass. Second one presented no problem at all.
For me, both the first and second one made me go to sleep early, aaaand that was it.
posted by jscalzi at 3:24 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
For me, both the first and second one made me go to sleep early, aaaand that was it.
posted by jscalzi at 3:24 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
I know maybe 5 people who really probably had covid (including one who got medical attention but tests didn't exist yet) and two definites. Meanwhile everyone I know has had some identifiable side effects from however many vaccination shots they've had. Even the "oh no I never get sick" among my coworkers and friendfamilysphere are advising each other to maybe block off a day of PTO just in case.
I really worry this is the early construction of a narrative that "everyone" has had covid and all the precautions and closures - even the vaccines themselves - were unnecessary and look at how great the death numbers are if you consider that the entire population has clearly had covid because look at all the people having side effects and we need to open everything back up immediately. See, it wasn't even as bad as the flu, since so many people didn't even know they'd had it until they got vaccine side effects.
Please think twice about telling someone else about what "they" say about this. I know this is a futile request and we'll see it in Ask within the week, but just consider not maybe?
posted by Lyn Never at 3:26 PM on May 4, 2021 [10 favorites]
I really worry this is the early construction of a narrative that "everyone" has had covid and all the precautions and closures - even the vaccines themselves - were unnecessary and look at how great the death numbers are if you consider that the entire population has clearly had covid because look at all the people having side effects and we need to open everything back up immediately. See, it wasn't even as bad as the flu, since so many people didn't even know they'd had it until they got vaccine side effects.
Please think twice about telling someone else about what "they" say about this. I know this is a futile request and we'll see it in Ask within the week, but just consider not maybe?
posted by Lyn Never at 3:26 PM on May 4, 2021 [10 favorites]
We just got our first dose of AstraZeneca yesterday, and last night was miserable. I haven’t felt that sick in years ... fever, chills, shaking, headache, etc. I had to take today off work to recover. I’m still achy and sore and completely exhausted.
posted by fimbulvetr at 3:28 PM on May 4, 2021
posted by fimbulvetr at 3:28 PM on May 4, 2021
Very interesting. Certainly fits with people I know... I had zero side effects whatsoever, either after shot 1 or 2 of Moderna. I'm pretty confident I hadn't been exposed prior to that, though.
But a couple of people who went with me, and had the same shots from the same production/lot numbers, had significant side effects. Mostly high fever and fatigue that lasted ~24 hours and then abruptly ended. At least one of them definitely had COVID before, and another worked in a public-facing service position with lots of potential for exposure.
I'd honestly been wondering why I hadn't had any side effects, and wondered if that meant my immune system wasn't reacting properly to the stimulus of the vaccine, so it's interesting to hear that it might have been due to my lack of exposure beforehand.
Neat stuff; it'll be interesting to see where the theory goes with a bigger sample size in a peer-reviewed study. Hopefully somebody is working on that.
posted by Kadin2048 at 3:29 PM on May 4, 2021
But a couple of people who went with me, and had the same shots from the same production/lot numbers, had significant side effects. Mostly high fever and fatigue that lasted ~24 hours and then abruptly ended. At least one of them definitely had COVID before, and another worked in a public-facing service position with lots of potential for exposure.
I'd honestly been wondering why I hadn't had any side effects, and wondered if that meant my immune system wasn't reacting properly to the stimulus of the vaccine, so it's interesting to hear that it might have been due to my lack of exposure beforehand.
Neat stuff; it'll be interesting to see where the theory goes with a bigger sample size in a peer-reviewed study. Hopefully somebody is working on that.
posted by Kadin2048 at 3:29 PM on May 4, 2021
No known exposure to COVID, no symptoms for the past year+. No reaction to the first Moderna shot other than a sore arm that day. Anecdata...
posted by Greg_Ace at 3:34 PM on May 4, 2021
posted by Greg_Ace at 3:34 PM on May 4, 2021
This says 83 out of 231 people who got sick after the first shot had covid? So plenty of people didn't, right?
I was knocked out for a day after my first and also the second (and a couple days of extreme fatigue after the second) and I find it hard to believe that that means I had asymptomatic covid at some point but no one else in my "pod" had symptoms after their first shot, so then they wouldn't have.
The one other person I know who had a reaction after the first shot was one of the most hermit-like people I knew for all of last year, and her partner did not feel like that after the first shot. So just anecdotally I don't think it explains everyone who had an intense first shot reaction.
posted by jeweled accumulation at 3:34 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
I was knocked out for a day after my first and also the second (and a couple days of extreme fatigue after the second) and I find it hard to believe that that means I had asymptomatic covid at some point but no one else in my "pod" had symptoms after their first shot, so then they wouldn't have.
The one other person I know who had a reaction after the first shot was one of the most hermit-like people I knew for all of last year, and her partner did not feel like that after the first shot. So just anecdotally I don't think it explains everyone who had an intense first shot reaction.
posted by jeweled accumulation at 3:34 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
I really worry this is the early construction of a narrative that "everyone" has had covid and all the precautions and closures - even the vaccines themselves - were unnecessary and look at how great the death numbers are if you consider that the entire population has clearly had covid because look at all the people having side effects and we need to open everything back up immediately. See, it wasn't even as bad as the flu, since so many people didn't even know they'd had it until they got vaccine side effects.
Thank you Lyn. I hate how this is flipping from "Oh no ones going to get it, shut up" to "Oh, everyone already got it, shut up". Still feels like we're on a lifeboat & begging each other to bail the water out while half of the boat just flatly refuses with increasingly bizarre excuses until it sinks. It's maddening.
posted by bleep at 3:37 PM on May 4, 2021 [3 favorites]
Thank you Lyn. I hate how this is flipping from "Oh no ones going to get it, shut up" to "Oh, everyone already got it, shut up". Still feels like we're on a lifeboat & begging each other to bail the water out while half of the boat just flatly refuses with increasingly bizarre excuses until it sinks. It's maddening.
posted by bleep at 3:37 PM on May 4, 2021 [3 favorites]
As far as I know I never had COVID and my second Pfizer shot knocked me out for 24 hours.
My non-peer-reviewed research has led me to believe that there is no rhyme or reason to who gets what side effects.
posted by bondcliff at 3:38 PM on May 4, 2021 [2 favorites]
My non-peer-reviewed research has led me to believe that there is no rhyme or reason to who gets what side effects.
posted by bondcliff at 3:38 PM on May 4, 2021 [2 favorites]
One can be exposed to COVID without getting infected, thus giving a kickstart to one's immune system before getting the vaccine. One simply didn't get enough virus to be infected, but enough for the immune system to start reacting.
In fact, one wonders if this, with properly investigated dates and follow-ups, may provide a BETTER timeline of global spread of COVID than the present data. This is definitely worth looking into.
posted by kschang at 3:38 PM on May 4, 2021
In fact, one wonders if this, with properly investigated dates and follow-ups, may provide a BETTER timeline of global spread of COVID than the present data. This is definitely worth looking into.
posted by kschang at 3:38 PM on May 4, 2021
I got my first Pfizer shot on Saturday and the nurse administering it mentioned this. I haven't had COVID so I wasn't worried. I felt a little tired for the first 24 hours or so but by afternoon Sunday I was fine. I'm a bit more concerned about the second shot in a few weeks from reading the news but most of the people I know who've had both shots haven't had much of a reaction.
posted by downtohisturtles at 3:40 PM on May 4, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by downtohisturtles at 3:40 PM on May 4, 2021 [2 favorites]
This says 83 out of 231 people who got sick after the first shot had covid? So plenty of people didn't, right?
I read the text and there's actually a pretty big and noticeable bump of symptomatic side effects for people who already had COVID. Some long haulers have even had symptoms subside after a vaccine dose.
Just stabbing in the dark but I'm assuming that activating the immune system all over again with high quality antibodies in massive volumes is helping to clear it as much as possible and possibly give the body another shot at clearing COVID from the immune privileged places like the CNS.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 3:40 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
I read the text and there's actually a pretty big and noticeable bump of symptomatic side effects for people who already had COVID. Some long haulers have even had symptoms subside after a vaccine dose.
Just stabbing in the dark but I'm assuming that activating the immune system all over again with high quality antibodies in massive volumes is helping to clear it as much as possible and possibly give the body another shot at clearing COVID from the immune privileged places like the CNS.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 3:40 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
Suspected early covid here; ran a temp of 101 for the first shot and 3 days at 102 for the second.
My big concern: if I contract a more virulent strain in the next six months, will my symptoms be even worse? I am confused why those of us with prior (possible) exposure had heightened reactions to the vaccine rather than muted. I would have expected the latter.
posted by Silvery Fish at 3:42 PM on May 4, 2021
My big concern: if I contract a more virulent strain in the next six months, will my symptoms be even worse? I am confused why those of us with prior (possible) exposure had heightened reactions to the vaccine rather than muted. I would have expected the latter.
posted by Silvery Fish at 3:42 PM on May 4, 2021
More anecdata: I had COVID for two weeks in the fall, albeit relatively mildly, and didn't have any reaction to either dose beyond a sore arm.
So, I dunno, I'm skeptical that there's a big correlation.
posted by Gadarene at 3:46 PM on May 4, 2021
So, I dunno, I'm skeptical that there's a big correlation.
posted by Gadarene at 3:46 PM on May 4, 2021
It all comes down to luck basically.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 3:48 PM on May 4, 2021
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 3:48 PM on May 4, 2021
I think there's way too much publication and argument over vaccine side effects that it's given people who are vaccine-hesitant yet another reason to avoid getting it. Is it worse than getting covid? Definitely!
The person I know with the worst vaccine side effects has been the person least likely to be exposed to covid.
I'm afraid that these stories are going to make a potential third shot/booster even harder to convince normal people to get if needed.
posted by meowzilla at 3:48 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
The person I know with the worst vaccine side effects has been the person least likely to be exposed to covid.
I'm afraid that these stories are going to make a potential third shot/booster even harder to convince normal people to get if needed.
posted by meowzilla at 3:48 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]
I live in the PNW and suspect I was infected with Covid early last March (2020), before our area began lockdown. I've had a number of symptoms since then that correlate with what others report as so-called "long Covid", including joint pain and shortness of breath, and my first dose of the Pfizer vaccine left me feeling quite poorly the day after. I'll be back for my second shot next week, so it will be interesting to see if I'm feeling worse again, or even if my other physical problems begin to improve, as has been observed by others who have had a positive Covid diagnosis, suffered long-term physical symptoms, and began to feel better after receiving the vaccine.
I am confused why those of us with prior (possible) exposure had heightened reactions to the vaccine rather than muted.
The mRNA vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna trick your body into making proteins similar to those found on the surface of common strains of the coronavirus. This triggers certain immune cells in your body to remember to make proteins ("immunoglobulins") that recognize those proteins, in case you run into the virus again. If you were infected previously, your immune system may have some memory of that infection and begins to mount an immune response triggered by vaccine administration and subsequent protein manufacture. That immune response is what makes you feel poorly, not the vaccine.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 3:51 PM on May 4, 2021
I am confused why those of us with prior (possible) exposure had heightened reactions to the vaccine rather than muted.
The mRNA vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna trick your body into making proteins similar to those found on the surface of common strains of the coronavirus. This triggers certain immune cells in your body to remember to make proteins ("immunoglobulins") that recognize those proteins, in case you run into the virus again. If you were infected previously, your immune system may have some memory of that infection and begins to mount an immune response triggered by vaccine administration and subsequent protein manufacture. That immune response is what makes you feel poorly, not the vaccine.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 3:51 PM on May 4, 2021
Bits of this thread make me worry about how successful the right has been in politicising science.
posted by howfar at 4:03 PM on May 4, 2021
posted by howfar at 4:03 PM on May 4, 2021
« Older Pastry-recognizing Japanese AI used to fight... | "It comes down to freedom." Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
I felt like crap the day after my second shot too, though. Fortunately no more Thomas Cromwell fever dreams.
posted by me & my monkey at 3:01 PM on May 4, 2021 [1 favorite]