Here it is mid-may and I have a tale for you. 
I haven’t spoken much about Covid 19 and the vaccines but I finally have something to say. First let me say that I am pro-vaccine and I certainly encourage everyone to get whatever vaccine they can get. I’m not anti-mask or anti-vaccine and I believe we should all follow all of the safety precautions and do our social distancing and not gather when it’s not safe to do so. This isn’t rocket science folks. Do the right thing! Moving on.
I have been trying to get a vaccine for more than a month now. I live in a rural area but I’m very close to a populated city, Belleville, Ontario and I even work in Belleville. I’m 58 and I’ve been on numerous wait-lists and have signed up through our Health Unit and on a local pharmacy’s website. I was casting my lines but getting no nibbles. On April 27th, I happened to stop into one of the Shopper’s Drug Mart on my way to work to purchase stamps when I thought to stop by the pharmacy section to ask about the vaccine. It was just before 10am and they hadn’t started giving out their daily doses so they asked me if I wanted one then and there. Of course I jumped at it and even convinced them to schedule my wife for later that date. I was just in the right place at the right time.
I was informed that it was the AstraZeneca vaccine but I didn’t care. I know there’s been some people who have died of rare blood clots but the smart people were saying that was extremely rare and to get the first vaccine that is offered. 
We have to get that herd immunity. Like I said, I didn’t care. I was given the information about the vaccine and agreed to it and got the jab in my left arm. I even texted my wife and children and my employer stating that I was no longer a vaccine virgin. I was happy that I did it.
Jump to later in the day and my left arm is very sorry and I have a slight headache. That evening the headache got worse and I started to feel unwell. I knew this was a possibility and I didn’t worry. I went to bed feeling ill and woke up in the middle of the night with the chills and shaking vigorously. My wife had to share her body heat to keep me warm and to stop the shivering. It wasn’t foreplay. Luckily she only had a slight headache from her vaccine. I eventually got back to sleep and then awoke later in the morning just soaked from sweat. I had to lie in my underwear on top of the blankets to try and cool down. I know, that’s an image you’ll never get out of your head.
I had received my vaccine on a Tuesday and I didn’t have to work the next day. 
Good thing, too, because I felt like I had been hit by a truck and not the nice kind with an ice-cream cache inside. I still had the headaches but I generally felt like I had the flu. That night, the buzzing in my ears started. The next day I felt a little better and by Friday I was running at about 90% of my old self but still with the ear buzzing and a slight headache. Friday afternoon, on my way home from work, my nose started running strenuously for about 30 minutes then stopped. Then the headache increased with dizziness, blurred vision, and chills and sweats again. The next day, Saturday, I was run over again by the same truck.
In the afternoon on Saturday I thought maybe I should get a Covid test because it was possible I had been infected before my vaccination and the current symptoms were from that. I managed to get into a drive-through Covid testing site and the results were back the next day and they were negative. I was still not feeling well on the Monday, May 2nd so I called the pharmacy that gave me the vaccine and they said to call my Doctor. I called my Doctor and told them I had been sick since getting the vaccine but I also had a Covid test but it was negative. The receptionist at my Doctor’s office said I wasn’t supposed to call her but to call “them.” I said, “who’s them?” She said, “the Covid testing center.” I explained again that I didn’t have Covid but everything had happened since getting the AstraZeneca vaccine. She took a moment to consult with my Doctor and said my Doctor would call me on Thursday afternoon, May 6th.
Meanwhile, I felt awful. I had the never-ending headache, buzzing in the ears, I had no energy and I was tired all the time. There was no fever and no cough. By the time my Doctor called me on Thursday, there had been no improvement. The pharmacy had recommended either Tylenol or Ibuprofen but neither did anything for me. My Doctor listened to me explain my symptoms over the phone and then basically said it was a side-effect of the vaccine and that I would have to tough it out. Five minutes later she called me back and asked for more details about when certain symptoms had started and intensity. She said she would call me back. Five minutes later, her receptionist called me and said the Doctor wanted to see me in her office right away.
I live 30 minutes away from my Doctor’s office so the drive was a little stressful. 
In fact, I was already dizzy and probably shouldn’t have driven myself. My wife was at work and I texted her but when the Doctor tells you to come to her office when she’s not seeing anyone in person then you don’t delay. By the time I got to her office, my heart was pounding and I was exhausted. I had to sit in an exam room for 10 minutes and I fell asleep.
When my Doctor finally came in she could see I wasn’t well but she asked me why I had come in. Duh, you told me to. She then asked why I had waited until today to report my symptoms. I explained that I had actually called her office on Monday and was told she would call me back Thursday. She was surprised by that and said they had some things to learn in her office…yeah, at my expense. I’ve had this Doctor for almost thirty years. She should know that I don’t usually come in unless I’m really ill. The Doctor then took my blood pressure, temperature, and then had me do some hand-eye coordination tests. She also had me try to walk a straight line with heel to toe but I kept stumbling because I was dizzy. She then told me to sit down because she was going to call the hospital because she wanted me to get to the Emergency department and get blood work and an MRI or Cat Scan if possible. If I wasn’t feeling ill before, that news sent me into a spin.
After five minutes, the Doctor came back and said the Hospital didn’t want to see me. She said they felt it was probably a reaction to the vaccine and that I would have to tough it out. Wasn’t that what she had said on Monday? Why all the tests and causing my anxiety to max out? Apparently the hospital was sure I hadn’t had a stroke and didn’t have a blood clot. This was after no blood work or xrays or even seeing me and they could diagnose me second-hand through my Doctor. I wasn’t impressed. I was drained and the ride home wasn’t much better than the drive in. I was exhausted when I got home and went and lay down for two hours. Sheesh!
The next day, Friday May 7th was no better and I was even worse on the Saturday and had to spend a lot of time in bed. Sunday was Mother’s Day and the sun shone and our son came to visit. I felt better but tired. Monday I had a dentist appointment and rallied enough to attend that. The dizziness and headache were still there. Today is Tuesday and I still have the headache and ear-ringing but I’m toughing it out and came to work. I’m off now until Friday. I’d love to wake up without the headache and ear-ringing but hopefully that will fade too. Yesterday, my local pharmacy notified me that I could come get my AstraZeneca vaccine. I phoned and told them I had it already. I didn’t tell them what they could do with the one they were holding for me.
Nothing is ever simple with me. I kept telling people I was glad I got the vaccine but if I knew I’d have this kind of reaction, I’d have waited for Pfizer or Moderna. It’s been a tough two weeks. I think my Doctor has learned something or I hope she has. Still, there’s talk about discontinuing AstraZeneca in Ontario so I’m wondering what that means for my second shot. There’s also talk about mixing and matching. 
I didn’t think you’re supposed to do that with medicine. I know you’re not supposed to mix your drinks. Honestly, this is like the magician asking you to pick a card and you hope he guesses right. Again, I’m encouraging everyone to get a vaccine but maybe read my precautionary tale and then put yourself on every list and get the one that you feel the most comfortable receiving. When the magician asks you to take a card and put it back, hide an extra one up your sleeve and screw up the whole trick. Stay home. Stay safe. And get a vaccine…I’m just not going to say which one.