It makes me very happy to be able to get vaccinated. Since the few cases of infection in Wuhan, I have been following the New coronavirus outbreak, including the race of countries to develop a vaccine. So, when it was my turn to roll up my sleeves at the clinic, it really felt like a historical moment.
But I’ll be honest: The vaccine side effects made me sick for a few days.
To be clear, though, even with foresight, I would have decided to get the vaccine. I would rather have the side effects than contract a new coronavirus or be subjected to another year of quarantine restrictions, not to mention the increased possibility of accidentally passing the virus to a loved one.
I got my first dose of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine at 9:30 am. That night, the feeling went straight downhill and I could barely get out of bed for the next three days.
The worst part was the migraine and vomiting, plus the body aches, chills and weakness.
I’m not going to lie in bed and really scream, “Why am I so unlucky? “After recovery, what I want to know is why some of us experience more severe side effects than others? Does this mean that I have built up a superb immune response in my body? So I did a BBC radio show, health Insider, to find out.
Where do the side effects come from?
The Neocoron vaccine “fools” the body into thinking it is fighting the Neocoron virus, allowing us to mount a natural immune response to the infection.
First, reactions such as swelling and pain can occur in the arm where the injection was given, because the immune system goes into high gear.
This can progress to affect other parts of the body and cause flu-like symptoms including fever, chills and nausea.
It’s caused by an inflammatory response,” Eleanor Riley, a professor of immunology and infectious diseases at Edinburgh University, told me.
It works like a chemical fire alarm, releasing large amounts of chemicals into the body to warn that something is wrong.
It mobilizes the immune response and sends immune cells into the tissues around the arm to find out exactly what’s going on,” Professor Riley said. “
However, it is these chemicals that make us feel temporarily uncomfortable.
Why do some people have more side effects?
The side effects, however, vary greatly from person to person. Some people feel almost nothing; others feel slightly uncomfortable but are fine and can still go to work; others need to be in bed.
Professor Andrew Pollard, who is in charge of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine trial, told me that this has something to do with the fact that I am not yet 40 years old: “The really important reason why the vaccine has so many side effects on you is probably to do with your own age. “
The older you are, the less side effects you have,” he said. —- People over 70 have almost no side effects. “
But even two people of the same age can have completely different reactions to the vaccine.
Professor Riley said on Health Insider, “There is a huge genetic diversity in our immune system, and that’s the basis of the differences. “
This diversity means that some people’s immune systems run a little bit more hyperactive and are more likely to respond positively.
People like you who get all the flu symptoms are the ones whose immune system overreacts,” Professor Riley said. “
“I don’t mean to blame you for having a ‘man’s flu’ (meaning that men with minor health problems – like a cold – keep complaining about how bad the symptoms are) But you’re probably really the kind of person who feels really uncomfortable when you have a slight cold or flu. “
Another factor that can have a slight effect on the side effects of the vaccine is a previous infection with the new coronavirus. This can lead to a very strong immune response after vaccination.
Does a greater vaccine side effect mean greater protection?
Selfishly, I had hoped that my having such strong side effects meant that I had a very strong immune response, and there is some evidence from previous vaccines that this was the case.
There have been precedents – such as the 2009 pandemic – where greater side effects meant a strong immune response,” Professor Pollard said. “
But that’s not the case with the new crown vaccine, where everyone gets roughly the same immunity.
It’s puzzling,” he said, “that even though the vaccine had minimal side effects in older people, they had exactly the same immune response. “
To explain why this is so, it is necessary to understand how the two parts of the immune system work together.
The first part, called the innate response, consists of that physical reaction that acts like a chemical alarm. The other part is the adaptive response, which learns and then remembers how to fight infection by designing B cells that produce antibodies to seek out and destroy viruses, plus T cells, which fight and kill any body cells infected by viruses.
It’s this early immunity to innate responses that changes with age and differences between people, and that’s what determines whether you have more or less side effects to the vaccine,” says Professor Riley. “
“You just need a little bit of an innate response to wake up the adaptive response and get the full complement of B and T cells that can give you protection. “
Will it be as bad with the second shot?
After experiencing so many side effects from the first shot, the natural worry is: will I have to go through this again on the second shot! However, I was reassured by what I heard from the experts.
Professor Pollard, who was in charge of the Oxford vaccine trial, said, “You will not feel anything with the second shot, which is very mild compared to the first shot. “
However, he also warned that there is some data suggesting that the second dose of the new crown vaccine made by Pfizer may have more side effects than the first dose.
Is it necessary to discuss side effects?
Concerns about vaccine side effects were at the forefront of news coverage after a very small number of people developed blood clots from the Oxford vaccine.
Incidental health problems were incorrectly attributed to the vaccine, a danger I warned about before the vaccine rollout began. The European Medicines Agency said there was “no indication that vaccination caused these health problems.”
Professor Pollard said there are vaccine side effects, and it is important to be open and honest about what they actually are.
He said, “During the trial, we had the opportunity to tell people that you might have great side effects like that whoever, might feel particularly uncomfortable for a few days; you know what can happen after vaccination, the side effects just inconvenience you, take some paracetamol tablets and then it’s over. “
“But if you are unprepared (mentally) and the side effects hit you in the head, it can be really scary. ”
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