Have you had your latest Covid vaccine yet? (Edited…not a booster)

[Grace Hopper]

49 minutes ago, Tenaj said:

I had my aunt scheduled today for the Covid vaccine at a CVS near her home but the insurance won't cover it -  I called because everything I can find says that it should be free under Medicare but the customer service said to call her PCP be cause the pharmacies aren't allowing Medicare to cover it?  Anyway, it's annoying but I just switched her to get the flu shot there today and I'll contact the Dr. Later today.  It's just annoying that it seems more difficult.  Cost without insurance is just shy of $200.

Try scheduling an appointment thru their Minute Clinic rather than through the pharmacy. 

[Spryte]

Is the Novavax available anywhere yet? I have lost track of the timing on it, but it’s definitely not available in my area yet — so maybe it’s coming soon?

[history-fan]

On 10/7/2023 at 7:18 PM, prairiewindmomma said:

Both adult and kid doses have been nearly impossible to get here. 
 

Our Walgreens regularly has reduced hours or completely closed days on short notice due to staffing. They seem to be having longer shortages of meds also. We used to use them—had some rx actually sent there accidentally this last week—and they had 0/3 meds available within 72 hours. These were very common meds, not listed as in shortage on the ashp website. 

The same thing is happening with the Walgreens near me. Taking 10 days for some refills, they didn’t have one and referred me to a different chain. The hours were down to 4 days week and drive through closed for 4 days last week.

I am transferring to a different pharmacy

[Kassia]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2023/10/09/walgreens-walkout-pharmacists-protest-working-conditions/71122866007/

[MercyA]

Received both vaccines at CVS today. No charge even with my horrible insurance. 

Noticed the joints in my hand starting to ache about 6 hours later. Now about 7 hours out and most of my body is achy. I feel off. Arm is only a little sore. 

Thanks for letting me whine. 😉 

And, oh, pharmacists should not joke when giving shots. When he sat down, he said, "I just wish I had more practice at this." I said, "Are you *kidding* me?" He was like, "Yeah, I've done at least 30 of these today." Flu shot was almost nothing, Covid a little more uncomfortable but over quickly.

[wendyroo]

DH, 14 year old, 12 year old and I got flu and the newest COVID shots 3 weeks ago. The COVID one was rough on all of us except the 12 year old (who may have already had some exposure to the newest Covid variants in public school). We were achy and very tired starting at the 12 hour mark and lasting 1-2 days. This was a smaller reaction than with my very first COVID shot, but larger than any of my others, and larger than any of my DH's (who has had very mild reactions to all of them) or DS's (who had almost no reactions to any of his in the past).

DD (turning 8 in a couple days) had her flu 3 weeks ago (no reaction) and her COVID first thing this morning. I started to see her droop this afternoon, but she chose to rally to make it through 3 hours of gymnastics this evening. On the way home, though, she was soooo much more tired than normal, but said her head hurt too much to fall asleep. Once I gave her ibuprofen and got her into bed, she was out like a light. There is nothing important on her schedule tomorrow, so she can sleep the day away if she needs to. I'm hoping she will be 100% recovered by her birthday on Sunday.

[MercyA]

Vaccine yesterday afternoon. I couldn't sleep *at all* last night. I'm guessing it's because I have a low-grade fever. Arm is very sore. Fairly significant body aches. Bit of a headache.

I definitely want to plan to have DD get these right before a weekend so she will have time to recover.

[Lecka]

I got an email from a Sunday School teacher, he’s going Friday for his Covid shot and is planning to miss church on Sunday because he always gets a fever for 2-3 days.  
 

At choir last night, people were saying they heard people who were getting Covid recently have been sicker for longer than people who had it last year.  It’s definitely in our area.  

[Scarlett]

My parents have used Walgreens for years but just this week she transferred to a local independent pharmacy.  She had so many problems with WG over the last few years.  
 

Their ap doesn’t work, they jerk her around on certain meds. She went in to pick up meds at 10 a.m. and they told her she could not get one of her RX until 5 p.m.  So she goes home and at 1:20 she gets a text that it is ready.  So she goes down there to pick it up and they are closed for lunch.

This week she called me and told me she had got a notification that her Rx was ready the night before at 6 p.m.  I went by and 3 and they had no record of it being ready. 
 

They signed up on line for a vaccine last year on line and when they got there they said oh we don’t get that info from on line. And they had to fill everything out again. 

Just one thing after another.  

Edited October 12, 2023 by Scarlett

[cintinative]

I had Moderna on Tuesday. I have always had Pfizer before. Yesterday was horrible. Achey, stomach pains, headache, fatigue, etc. I never had anything more than a bit of fatigue with Pfizer. It's so bizarre how that works.  I am still achey today.

I definitely will have to look into getting Pfizer for my boys. They really can't plan to take three days off of work and school.

[Lecka]

The only after-hours pharmacy in my large town or the large town North of us, is a Walgreens.  What a mess.  I have changed otherwise.  
 

The last time I was there I really felt sorry for the people working there, and all the customers who needed an after-hours prescription.  
 

Other customers told me they had to come from the town North of us, so they had to drive on top of everything else.  I cannot believe there is not an after-hours pharmacy there…. It would be half as bad if there were another after-hours pharmacy there.  
 

 

[BeachGal]

One of my adult sons, who is living with us for two months, is almost over Covid. He had a bad headache, sore joints and muscles and a runny nose and light cough. The symptoms were shorter and milder than his first bout of Covid two years ago. His test result was definitely positive, though. 

The more worrying effect is the spike protein remnant damage to arteries and veins. Spike protein takes awhile to clear even after symptoms abate. He was supposed to compete in a race this weekend but is cancelling because he wants to heal up some more to prevent any damage or bring on long Covid.

We live in tight quarters and were exposed to him the whole time. Dh and I did not get sick at all. Maybe we were just asymptomatic. Hard to tell. But so far, so good. We have the original Pfizer vaccine and two boosters.

At this point we are going to wait for Novavax. Ds won’t get that for awhile after just having had Covid.

[Ditto]

Teen and I got ours Monday.  Teen also got a flu shot at the same time (same arm too!).  I had already had my flu shot.  We both have done well since then with no issues.    It is nice to have it completed.

 

Edit:  We both got Moderna.  This is the first time we have had Moderna.  The pharmacist did tell us that now Pfizer and Moderna are the same for the first time.

Edited October 12, 2023 by Ditto

[catz]

I had moderna today!  This was #6 for me.  #2,3,4 were rough from about 10 hours to about 30 hours out.  But I had no problem with #5.  Crossing fingers because I have things to do!

[KSera]

5 hours ago, Ditto said:

The pharmacist did tell us that now Pfizer and Moderna are the same for the first time.

Really? How did I miss this? I've been assuming that Moderna still had a larger dose than Pfizer. Now I need to go find that info. And even more so for kids, where the Pfizer dosages were tiny and not as effective.

[iamonlyone]

On 10/11/2023 at 11:26 AM, Spryte said:

Is the Novavax available anywhere yet? I have lost track of the timing on it, but it’s definitely not available in my area yet — so maybe it’s coming soon?

According to vaccine.gov (not sure how comprehensive that site is from other comments I've read here), my city doesn't have Novavax yet, and the larger city 50 miles away only has it at one health dept. and only for Bridge Access participants.

I hope it is more widely available soon!

[Ditto]

43 minutes ago, KSera said:

Really? How did I miss this? I've been assuming that Moderna still had a larger dose than Pfizer. Now I need to go find that info. And even more so for kids, where the Pfizer dosages were tiny and not as effective.

I was surprised too.  She just said that this is the first time they were the same and contained the same ingredients.  Definitely do your research especially if you are having a child get it.  She also said that they only had Moderna.  It seems like Moderna is far more widely available that Pfizer, but I have no idea why.

[Corraleno]

15 hours ago, Ditto said:

This is the first time we have had Moderna.  The pharmacist did tell us that now Pfizer and Moderna are the same for the first time.

9 hours ago, KSera said:

Really? How did I miss this? I've been assuming that Moderna still had a larger dose than Pfizer. Now I need to go find that info. And even more so for kids, where the Pfizer dosages were tiny and not as effective.

8 hours ago, Ditto said:

I was surprised too.  She just said that this is the first time they were the same and contained the same ingredients.  Definitely do your research especially if you are having a child get it. 

The pharmacist is mistaken, the doses for the newest XBB booster are the same as the previous boosters. Moderna = 50 mcg of mRNA for adults (12+) and 25 mcg for kids (6mos-11). Pfizer = 30 mcg for adults, 10 mcg for 5-11, and 3 mcg for 6mos-4.

Also, Pfizer and Moderna do not have "the same ingredients," they use different adjuvants, which may be part of the reason for the stronger reaction with Moderna.

Here is a screenshot from the updated dosage chart from the American Academy of Pediatrics, you can see the full dosage information by age if you click the link.

Edited October 13, 2023 by Corraleno

[Ditto]

2 hours ago, Corraleno said:

The pharmacist is mistaken, the doses for the newest XBB booster are the same as the previous boosters. Moderna = 50 mcg of mRNA for adults (12+) and 25 mcg for kids (6mos-11). Pfizer = 30 mcg for adults, 10 mcg for 5-11, and 3 mcg for 6mos-4.

Also, Pfizer and Moderna do not have "the same ingredients," they use different adjuvants, which may be part of the reason for the stronger reaction with Moderna.

Here is a screenshot from the updated dosage chart from the American Academy of Pediatrics, you can see the full dosage information by age if you click the link.

Thank you so much for the correct information.  I appreciate it.  You went to a lot of trouble to get the correct information to us.   I do wonder what made the pharmacist think they were the same (rhetorical question since we will never know)?  I didn't ask her if they were, this is information she volunteered. 

[mommyoffive]

3 hours ago, Corraleno said:

The pharmacist is mistaken, the doses for the newest XBB booster are the same as the previous boosters. Moderna = 50 mcg of mRNA for adults (12+) and 25 mcg for kids (6mos-11). Pfizer = 30 mcg for adults, 10 mcg for 5-11, and 3 mcg for 6mos-4.

Also, Pfizer and Moderna do not have "the same ingredients," they use different adjuvants, which may be part of the reason for the stronger reaction with Moderna.

Here is a screenshot from the updated dosage chart from the American Academy of Pediatrics, you can see the full dosage information by age if you click the link.

Thanks for posting such detailed info.  I know that weeks ago I had read that Moderna is still higher.

Really really sad that a pharmacist wouldn't know and is spreading that info.

[MercyA]

DD15 is getting both vaccines today. Is it worth it to drive out of town to get Pfizer instead of Moderna, due to potential side effects?

My side effects with Moderna lasted over 48 hours.

[mommyoffive]

Just now, MercyA said:

DD15 is getting both vaccines today. Is it worth it to drive out of town to get Pfizer instead of Moderna, due to potential side effects?

My side effects with Moderna lasted over 48 hours.

Has your dd had Moderna before?  I think that some people have reactions and some don't.  

2021 I got Moderna and Flu at the same day and had a horrible reaction to that.  I was down for days. 

Last year I spaced them out and didn't have anything noticeable other than a sore arm. 

[MercyA]

3 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

Has your dd had Moderna before?  I think that some people have reactions and some don't.  

2021 I got Moderna and Flu at the same day and had a horrible reaction to that.  I was down for days. 

Last year I spaced them out and didn't have anything noticeable other than a sore arm. 

No, she's had four and they've all been Pfizer.

I had five previously, all Pfizer, and no reaction like this before. I never had the flu and Covid at the same time though.

Edited October 13, 2023 by MercyA

[mommyoffive]

5 minutes ago, MercyA said:

No, she's had four and they've all been Pfizer.

This is not based off of any study or anything, but I would think she would might have some side affects just switching to a different one.  But also maybe not.  I don't think it is a for sure thing.  

But also the combo of the flu shot could do something.

But if she doesn't have anything to do for a few days maybe it is worth the higher dosage and getting the flu shot done too.  

[KSera]

15 hours ago, iamonlyone said:

According to vaccine.gov (not sure how comprehensive that site is from other comments I've read here), my city doesn't have Novavax yet, and the larger city 50 miles away only has it at one health dept. and only for Bridge Access participants.

I hope it is more widely available soon!

I think vaccine.gov isn’t looking to include all the options. I’m finding Costco has novavax appointments available around here and they aren’t showing up on vaccine.gov. 

[YaelAldrich]

15 hours ago, iamonlyone said:

According to vaccine.gov (not sure how comprehensive that site is from other comments I've read here), my city doesn't have Novavax yet, and the larger city 50 miles away only has it at one health dept. and only for Bridge Access participants.

I hope it is more widely available soon!

If you have a Costco local to you, call them (don't look at the website) and ask if they have Novavax. Mine in MA did.

[Danae]

24 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

This is not based off of any study or anything, but I would think she would might have some side affects just switching to a different one.  But also maybe not.  I don't think it is a for sure thing.  

But also the combo of the flu shot could do something.

But if she doesn't have anything to do for a few days maybe it is worth the higher dosage and getting the flu shot done too.  

My kiddos just had their first Moderna after all previous Pfizer and had the same relatively mild reaction as last time. (Sore arm for a few days and a couple hours of chills and fever on day 2.)

[iamonlyone]

48 minutes ago, KSera said:

I think vaccine.gov isn’t looking to include all the options. I’m finding Costco has novavax appointments available around here and they aren’t showing up on vaccine.gov. 

KSera and Yael, thank you! We don't have Costco, but I called one in the larger city 45 minutes from us, and they have Novavax. Thank you for the tip!

[Lady Florida.]

1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Has your dd had Moderna before?  I think that some people have reactions and some don't.  

2021 I got Moderna and Flu at the same day and had a horrible reaction to that.  I was down for days. 

Last year I spaced them out and didn't have anything noticeable other than a sore arm. 

I've had Moderna for every vaccine and booster. I only had a mild tiredness from the 2nd vaccine (not booster but at the start when you had to have 2 shots spaced out). Ds had Pfizer at the beginning and was out of it for about 48 hours after the 1st one. Reactions just seem to be different for everyone regardless of brand. None of us in this household have had reactions to the boosters or the current vaccine.

As far as Moderna vs. Pfizer vs. Novavax for the current one, all our pharmacies in the area say they have no control over what gets sent to them and that they don't know what they'll be sent until it arrives. Hence, my reasons for Moderna for the boosters and the latest vax. It's what they had when and where I was able to go get it.

[Ditto]

7 hours ago, MercyA said:

DD15 is getting both vaccines today. Is it worth it to drive out of town to get Pfizer instead of Moderna, due to potential side effects?

My side effects with Moderna lasted over 48 hours.

I know we are all different, but wanted to let you know that this is the first time teen and I had Moderna and we did well with it.  We have both had minor side effects from some of the Pfizer vaccines, not all.  We were both braced to deal with a few days of not feeling great since it was our first time with Moderna, but truly all was fine with zero issues.  

[MercyA]

Thanks all! DH and DD both received flu and Moderna vaccines today. So far so good. 

[MercyA]

Morning after flu + Moderna: DD is fine other than a sore arm. DH feels awful, but is thankful for a strong immune response.

[Spryte]

Anyone who’s had Novavax: how were the side effects? How did they compare to Pfizer or Moderna?

We all have appointments for Novavax on Monday afternoon. I am trying not to be nervous, but with my history that’s a tall order.

 

[KSera]

20 minutes ago, Spryte said:

Anyone who’s had Novavax: how were the side effects? How did they compare to Pfizer or Moderna?

We all have appointments for Novavax on Monday afternoon. I am trying not to be nervous, but with my history that’s a tall order.

 

I haven’t gotten it yet, but somewhere I saw a chart comparing incidence of various side effects with the different vaccines (was that here?). I’ll share it if I can find it again. There were certain side effects that were less likely and others that were about the same. With your history, I definitely think it makes sense to try something different. How have you done with other protein based vaccines, like HPV or hepB? Have you had either of those?

 

[Corraleno]

Long and fairly technical discussion of the current state of nasal vaccine development. The good news is that there have been some promising trial results and the US is now providing significant funding. Topol thinks it's possible that we may have an effective nasal vaccine by the end of 2024.

https://erictopol.substack.com/p/covid-nasal-vaccines-get-a-boost

 

(Oops, I meant to put this in the Omicron thread, I will cross post it there...)

Edited October 14, 2023 by Corraleno

[Spryte]

2 hours ago, KSera said:

I haven’t gotten it yet, but somewhere I saw a chart comparing incidence of various side effects with the different vaccines (was that here?). I’ll share it if I can find it again. There were certain side effects that were less likely and others that were about the same. With your history, I definitely think it makes sense to try something different. How have you done with other protein based vaccines, like HPV or hepB? Have you had either of those?

 

I don’t recall if I’ve had those. My doc is pretty cautious with me re: vaccines, and has been for about 15 years, so I’ve really only gotten flu and tetanus shots. It’s time for shingles, though (gulp). My gut says to try the Novavax, because Pfizer and Moderna were pretty bad and with Novavax there’s hope for less reaction. 
 

If you come across anything, I’d love to see it!

[Shoeless]

Hmm, doesn't look like Novavax is available anywhere near me. 

Is Novavax that much better than Moderna or Pfizer to warrant an hour+ trip to a bigger city for it? I've had all Moderna previously. The guys in my house have all done Pfizer. 

[Spryte]

32 minutes ago, Shoeless said:

Hmm, doesn't look like Novavax is available anywhere near me. 

Is Novavax that much better than Moderna or Pfizer to warrant an hour+ trip to a bigger city for it? I've had all Moderna previously. The guys in my house have all done Pfizer. 

If you’re using vaccines.gov, I found that it just doesn’t show up. Our Costco has them in stock, but vaccines.gov says the closest Novavax is 50 miles away. Maybe worth a try!

[KSera]

33 minutes ago, Shoeless said:

Hmm, doesn't look like Novavax is available anywhere near me. 

Is Novavax that much better than Moderna or Pfizer to warrant an hour+ trip to a bigger city for it? I've had all Moderna previously. The guys in my house have all done Pfizer. 

I think no one knows for sure. For people who reacted particularly badly to the mRNA, it seems reasonable to try a different shot, but there also does seem to be indication the Novavax one may extend protection a little longer. But I really think we don’t have good enough data to know for sure. I mean, it could just as easily turn out that everyone who has held out for Novavax will end up having lower efficacy than if they had gone with mRNA. I’m going with the hope that diversity of vaccinations will increase protection, but I’m aware I’m going based on not much data yet. 

[mommyoffive]

18 hours ago, Spryte said:

Anyone who’s had Novavax: how were the side effects? How did they compare to Pfizer or Moderna?

We all have appointments for Novavax on Monday afternoon. I am trying not to be nervous, but with my history that’s a tall order.

 

Thinking good thoughts for you tomorrow! 

[QueenCat]

When I last posted, I'd had mine done. Now dh and my sons have had

there's. No one's had any major issues. Just achy arms.

[mommyoffive]

Most of us got it today.  We went with Moderna.  I still can't find any place that has the kids dose.  Sigh.  I will be on the hunt.  

[iamonlyone]

On 10/14/2023 at 5:38 PM, Spryte said:

I don’t recall if I’ve had those. My doc is pretty cautious with me re: vaccines, and has been for about 15 years, so I’ve really only gotten flu and tetanus shots. It’s time for shingles, though (gulp). My gut says to try the Novavax, because Pfizer and Moderna were pretty bad and with Novavax there’s hope for less reaction. 
 

If you come across anything, I’d love to see it!

This is the article I read about Novavax that cited the difference in side effects:

https://yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/novavax-is-here

It's referring to a January 2022 study, so the specific vaccines would have been different. I'm planning on getting Novavax because of — I hope — minimal side effects and to mix up the vaccines I received. (So far, I have J&J and then three Pfizers.)

[KSera]

4 hours ago, iamonlyone said:

This is the article I read about Novavax that cited the difference in side effects:

https://yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/novavax-is-here

It's referring to a January 2022 study, so the specific vaccines would have been different. I'm planning on getting Novavax because of — I hope — minimal side effects and to mix up the vaccines I received. (So far, I have J&J and then three Pfizers.)

Thank you, that’s the one!

edited to add: I wonder why it doesn’t include Moderna/Moderna?

Edited October 16, 2023 by KSera

[mommyoffive]

Are the best ones for teen boys Pfizer or Novavax?  Still better to stay away from Moderna for teen boys?

[KSera]

1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Are the best ones for teen boys Pfizer or Novavax?  Still better to stay away from Moderna for teen boys?

That’s my choice for mine. Novavax has lower myocarditis rates than Pfizer, but not zero. 

[stephanier.1765]

I had mine yesterday morning and I was fine for the rest of the day. Today, however, is not fine. Every muscle I have hurts and hurts a lot. I have taken medication but so far it hasn't helped. Ugh, I really do feel terrible.

[OakParkOwlets]

I got mine last Friday with my flu shot.  My arm was a little sore that day and that evening I felt tired earlier that usual.  I slept fine and woke up feeling fine (no chills or fever).  I've heard from several people the flu shot made them very sleepy so it very well might have been the flu shot causing that with me too.  This is my 4th or 5th Covid shot and I haven't had a problem with any of them, so I wasn't too worried about this one, vaccines in general don't bother my body much except for the sore arm.

[KSera]

54 minutes ago, stephanier.1765 said:

I had mine yesterday morning and I was fine for the rest of the day. Today, however, is not fine. Every muscle I have hurts and hurts a lot. I have taken medication but so far it hasn't helped. Ugh, I really do feel terrible.

I’m sorry! Did you take some kind of ibuprofen or other NSAID?

[Spryte]

18 hours ago, KSera said:

That’s my choice for mine. Novavax has lower myocarditis rates than Pfizer, but not zero. 

Well blerg, I just got DS (19) the Novavax, thinking it had lower side effects — including myocarditis — yesterday.

I’m not too worried, but what do we need to watch for re: myocarditis?

In other news, thus far my side effects have been a sore arm for about two hours, and not much else. I’m tired, and had nightmares all night, but nothing significant. So far, so good.

DH and DS have had a low grade temp, DH was very tired and napped at 6:00 pm. But no one seems miserable.