[Marie123]

I don't feel positive about getting the vaccine. I do have an appointment to get it. Does anyone else feel this way? I am 74 and never get sick. I am concerned about the long-term effects.

[NatalieJastrow]

I feel the same but given your age I don't know... seems like it would be worth it to you.

I am 50, however.
I have a high vitamin D level (always have)
I have O blood type.
I believe I had an original coronavirus strain in late December 2019 so I believe I have some immunity.
I am overweight only.
I live in a metro area where 60% (currently) of people are vaccinated with at least one shot
The total deaths in my age group for all of covid is 8000 women. (I just looked at women)
summer is usually the time for the lowest cases and spread, doesn't seem to make sense to have it now.

My concern is not knowing the long term potential of these experimental vaccines (with having a good 30 years of potential life left) so, at the moment, since I am sitting at home, I am not getting it. If I get called back to work I might have a decision to make. Come fall If the cases jump again I might need to get it.

There are other vaccines that are in the process of coming out that operate like more traditional vaccines... I am kind of waiting for them.

[Nammu]

There are no long term effects of getting the shot. However covid has many long term effects. From not being able to smell to having a hard time breathing and needing oxygen.

[NatalieJastrow]

Originally Posted by Nammu

There are no long term effects of getting the shot. However covid has many long term effects. From not being able to smell to having a hard time breathing and needing oxygen.

That is not factually true. We simply don't know if there are long term effects yet.. and what they might be.

We also don't know if covid has long term effects yet. No study has been done to prove that any effects were due to covid. It is an association not causation.

[Mountaindewed]

I’m kind of nervous about the possible side effects from my second one that I’m getting on Wednesday. But I talked with my primary doctor and he was very reassuring in that it was safe and the side effects (if there were any) wouldn’t be life threatening. I had called him the day before the first shot to make sure the moderna one wouldn’t react badly to anything I was taking and he said it was fine.

If you are unsure talk to your doctor.

[unaluna]

I'm 69, and kinda going by my gut feeling in this, which is not usually how i make decisions. Usually i totally avoid making decisions, no joke.

I had made 2 previous appts and cancelled them, because they were not convenient to get to (i dont own a car). I had tried to get other drugstore appointments, but one was never available. Finally a moderna came up that was one bus ride away at a convenient time. I received shot one this week and also got my first haircut in two years!

I talked to my gp dr last week and he said GO GET IT. He was pretty adamant.

It kinda feels like a passport to the outside world.

My feeling about the new CDC mask mandate is about as cynical as T****'s initial directive - they will let people self-select. You can't fight Darwin. The people who guess right will survive.

Eta - i was kinda wiped out for a couple of days after my shot, but i also physically exerted myself much more than usual day of (walking). I think that may have mitigated the side effects because all the walking and fresh air probably helped my circulation etc. I took a buck load of ibuprophen tho.

[ArtleyWilkins]

The severe lung damage alone from Covid is enough reason to take the precaution of the vaccine. My husband just passed away after over 100 days fighting the devastating lung damage. He was only 57. My daughter-in-law also has lung damage from Covid over a year after the initial illness. She just turned 31.

Additionally, every doctor we have dealt with has noted high incidence of diabetes in patients with no previous history as well as cardiac damage.

Additionally, the muscle wasting from long-term hospitalization can be severe requiring months of rehabilitation. My husband lost over 50 pounds in three months - all muscle mass- leaving him unable to support his own weight.

My husband experienced all four of these issues and the lung damage killed him. I feel pretty confident that even had he lived, the long-term effects on his health would probably never have been fully healed.

Covid is a monster to those stricken with its most severe form. Don’t mess with it.

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by Marie123

I don't feel positive about getting the vaccine. I do have an appointment to get it. Does anyone else feel this way? I am 74 and never get sick. I am concerned about the long-term effects.

74, long term effects? I think we are getting to the age where, as the comedians say, we shouldnt even buy green bananas!

[TerryL]

i decided not to take the vaccine as it is full of unknowns. i think i had covid in early feb last year as i dry-coughed for six weeks. when covid became known in march, i started to wear two masks. then in aug i started to have breathing issues (i think it was from wearing those two masks while my lungs were still healing from the coughing) but it has improved with time. i have been tested for covid since aug of last year and have always tested negative.

now i wear a mask when i am around others but the fabric is not that tightly woven. it still passes the "can i blow out a candle with this mask on" test to protect others. i would rather be exposed to a small amount of the virus to stimulate an immune response. this way i don't have to worry about variants or booster shots etc. just my own theory.

[BeyondtheRainbow]

Artley, I am so sorry for your loss.

[TunedOut]

Originally Posted by ArtleyWilkins

The severe lung damage alone from Covid is enough reason to take the precaution of the vaccine. My husband just passed away after over 100 days fighting the devastating lung damage. He was only 57. My daughter-in-law also has lung damage from Covid over a year after the initial illness. She just turned 31.

I am sorry about your loss and that your daughter is struggling. Thanks for conveying this information because, though I have the opinion (but am not a doctor so I consider my opinion not as relevant as yours and experts) that the risk varies by age and other factors, it is important information to consider. Again, thanks for reminding us of the risks.

[TunedOut]

Originally Posted by Marie123

I don't feel positive about getting the vaccine. I do have an appointment to get it. Does anyone else feel this way? I am 74 and never get sick. I am concerned about the long-term effects.

More than one of my doctors encouraged me to get vaccinated and even though many of them are younger (one is probably in his late twenties), they told me they got vaccinated (didn't tell me to do something they weren't willing to do themselves). I feel like vaccinations are risky but so is COVID and from the videos I have viewed, the risk goes up the older we get. My dad (80), my sister (in her 50s) and I had the Pfizer vaccine (I am 57) with no adverse events (only a sour arm for less than 24 hours). The 2nd Moderna vaccine made my brother sick for about one day (but he recovered). IMO, at our ages, our health is a blessing and there are no guarantees about anything. That I am 57 (or if I was older) made it seem like it was riskier not to get vaccinated. However, I do believe people should be able to choose and I hope it all works out for you whatever you choose.

[Taylor27]

[QUOTE=ArtleyWilkins;7072890]The severe lung damage alone from Covid is enough reason to take the precaution of the vaccine. My husband just passed away after over 100 days fighting the devastating lung damage. He was only 57.QUOTE]

Sorry to hear about your husband passing away ArtleyWilkins

[ArtleyWilkins]

My husband had been on vitamin D for years also with levels monitored by his physician.

[rechu]

Originally Posted by ArtleyWilkins

The severe lung damage alone from Covid is enough reason to take the precaution of the vaccine. My husband just passed away after over 100 days fighting the devastating lung damage. He was only 57. My daughter-in-law also has lung damage from Covid over a year after the initial illness. She just turned 31.

Additionally, every doctor we have dealt with has noted high incidence of diabetes in patients with no previous history as well as cardiac damage.

Additionally, the muscle wasting from long-term hospitalization can be severe requiring months of rehabilitation. My husband lost over 50 pounds in three months - all muscle mass- leaving him unable to support his own weight.

My husband experienced all four of these issues and the lung damage killed him. I feel pretty confident that even had he lived, the long-term effects on his health would probably never have been fully healed.

Covid is a monster to those stricken with its most severe form. Don’t mess with it.

The lung problems and other long term health effects are definitely not to be taken lightly. There was a segment on TV about the first woman who had to be airlifted to a different region last year when the ICUs are full. It was exactly one year later. Both she and her husband were hospitalized with COVID. A year later, her husband is still having serious problems with his lungs due to the damage left by COVID.

My father is a retired chemist and my sister is a biologist working with epidemiologists. They both have been following the vaccine developments closely. I discussed the pros and cons of the vaccine with them. Here we had at that point only Pfizer and one of the Chinese vaccines, Sinovac, available. After talking to them, I decided to try and get Pfizer, even though only about 15% of what was being given was Pfizer at that point. Due to part luck, and part determination and I was able to get Pfizer.


Those of you in countries like the US and other developed nations should feel fortunate to have access to the best vaccines. My country is vaccinating relatively quickly but mainly with a less useful vaccine that does not help control transmission very much. In many neighboring countries in my region, they are still working on vaccinating the most vulnerable like health workers and the elderly. Most have vaccinated less than 10% of their population.

[unaluna]

Rechu - you are right. I feel it is our shame that so many here refuse the vaccine when other countries are begging for it. It is time for us to stop hoarding it. I believe that is what Pence is moving to, to make more vaccine available globally.

[AncientMelody]

Originally Posted by ArtleyWilkins

The severe lung damage alone from Covid is enough reason to take the precaution of the vaccine. My husband just passed away after over 100 days fighting the devastating lung damage. He was only 57. My daughter-in-law also has lung damage from Covid over a year after the initial illness. She just turned 31.

Additionally, every doctor we have dealt with has noted high incidence of diabetes in patients with no previous history as well as cardiac damage.

Additionally, the muscle wasting from long-term hospitalization can be severe requiring months of rehabilitation. My husband lost over 50 pounds in three months - all muscle mass- leaving him unable to support his own weight.

My husband experienced all four of these issues and the lung damage killed him. I feel pretty confident that even had he lived, the long-term effects on his health would probably never have been fully healed.

Covid is a monster to those stricken with its most severe form. Don’t mess with it.

I am so sorry for the loss of your husband, That is heartbreaking. My 41 year old husband was in the ICU for ten days with COVID. My poor kids were so scared having their dad in the hospital.No vent but he was up to 60 liters of oxygen. He did manage to pull through thankfully. I have a 51 year old patient who has been vented for a month--I have almost no hope for him to make a meaningful recovery at this point. My thoughts are with you!

[AncientMelody]

Originally Posted by NatalieJastrow

That is not factually true. We simply don't know if there are long term effects yet.. and what they might be.

We also don't know if covid has long term effects yet. No study has been done to prove that any effects were due to covid. It is an association not causation.

No disrespect intended, but if you don't acknowledge longer term complications of COVID for some patients, then at this point it is almost willful ignorance. Can we know for sure that any symptom someone develops post COVID is from COVID? No, I'm sure there are some where they aren't linked. But there is CLEAR evidence that COVID develops longer term complications for some. It's not even entirely unique in that sense.....viruses have long been known in the medical community to cause long term complications for some people.

A previously healthy patient develops severe COVID and subsequently requires a lung transplant and you're not convinced that a virus known to attack the cardiovascular and respiratory tract was the cause? have you other theories as to the cause?

Young Patient In Chicago Gets Double-Lung Transplant For COVID-19 : Shots - Health News : NPR

"Doctors at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago announced Thursday they've performed the first successful double-lung transplant on a COVID-19 patient in the United States.

The woman in her 20s was otherwise healthy but developed a severe case of COVID-19 that resulted in hospitalization, says Dr. Ankit Bharat, Northwestern's chief of thoracic surgery.

For two months, she was in the intensive care unit on a ventilator and another machine, known as ECMO, that pumps and oxygenates blood outside of the body. Although she eventually cleared the coronavirus from her body, she remained in severe condition.

By early June, Bharat says the patient's lungs showed irreversible damage. She was at risk of further decline and began showing signs that her kidneys and liver were starting to fail with no improvement in her lung function.

"As a result of the COVID, she had formed these cavities inside the lung, and those cavities had become infected, and that bacteria was driving sepsis," Bharat says.

Bharat says they determined a double-lung transplant was her only chance of survival."

My own case is far less dramatic. However: I contracted COVID in November of last year at age 38. I am a non smoker, I exercise very regularly, and got 8 hours of sleep at night. I was on no medications for chronic conditions at that point. I took a vitamin D supplement. I was healthy. I had an infection that was miserable but not terrible; fevers, body aches all over, fatigue. I was sick for ten days. On day 8 I developed gastrointestinal symptoms. Nausea, intermittent vomiting, loss of appetite, early satiety (feeling full after having only a few bites of food). Abdominal cramps. I had NO GI conditions prior to my illness. I've lost ten pounds and I am now underweight. And you're going to claim that we don't know that COVID caused this? really? It's funny, because the gastroenterologist who evaluated me actually diagnosed me with post-viral gastroparesis secondary to COVID. My primary care physician who's known me for ten years and my boss (also a medical doctor) also concur with the diagnosis. But.....we don't know that it's from COVID. Sure

And let me make this clear: I am not trying to pressure you into getting the vaccine. There are legit reasons to get the vaccine, and there are legit reasons not to get it. I'm not your doctor so I'm not in the position to know if it's in your best interests to get it or not. But do not cast doubt on the millions of us who suffer the effects of COVID months later to make your case.

[unaluna]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Rechu - you are right. I feel it is our shame that so many here refuse the vaccine when other countries are begging for it. It is time for us to stop hoarding it. I believe that is what Pence is moving to, to make more vaccine available globally.

Pence? Where did that come from? Biden! Mind fart!

[ArtleyWilkins]

Originally Posted by AncientMelody

I am so sorry for the loss of your husband, That is heartbreaking. My 41 year old husband was in the ICU for ten days with COVID. My poor kids were so scared having their dad in the hospital.No vent but he was up to 60 liters of oxygen. He did manage to pull through thankfully. I have a 51 year old patient who has been vented for a month--I have almost no hope for him to make a meaningful recovery at this point. My thoughts are with you!

Thank you. It was a long road. No vent for my husband either - until the end it became apparent he needed to be placed on a vent but we chose otherwise - enough was enough. He had suffered enough.

The most frustrating things I read over and over again are from people who like to say things like 99% recover, yadda yadda, without any real understanding what "recovery" means for patients that were dealing with severe COVID. Or, just take these vitamins and you'll be fine. Or, they must have had pre-existing conditions so they really didn't die from COVID. The willful ignorance is infuriating.

I saw hospital room after hospital room in multiple hospitals, filled with COVID patients who, if they make it, will need months and months of rehabilitation - and it became very clear to me that full recovery from severe COVID, without any lingering long-term effects, is very much the exception, not the norm.

You mention a double lung transplant in another post. We have a 17-year-old student in our school who lost function of both kidneys last summer due to COVID, and she is on dialysis awaiting transplant.

[ArtleyWilkins]

Originally Posted by AncientMelody

My own case is far less dramatic. However: I contracted COVID in November of last year at age 38. I am a non smoker, I exercise very regularly, and got 8 hours of sleep at night. I was on no medications for chronic conditions at that point. I took a vitamin D supplement. I was healthy. I had an infection that was miserable but not terrible; fevers, body aches all over, fatigue. I was sick for ten days. On day 8 I developed gastrointestinal symptoms. Nausea, intermittent vomiting, loss of appetite, early satiety (feeling full after having only a few bites of food). Abdominal cramps. I had NO GI conditions prior to my illness. I've lost ten pounds and I am now underweight. And you're going to claim that we don't know that COVID caused this? really? It's funny, because the gastroenterologist who evaluated me actually diagnosed me with post-viral gastroparesis secondary to COVID. My primary care physician who's known me for ten years and my boss (also a medical doctor) also concur with the diagnosis. But.....we don't know that it's from COVID. Sure

This fascinates me. My 31-year-old daughter-in-law has recently been diagnosed with gastroparesis secondary to COVID. She actually had COVID twice, has developed severe chronic asthma and gastroparesis. Poor things can't eat without getting sick. She's miserable.

[*Beth*]

There is a member of this forum who has a close friend, he caught covid and the lasting effect for him has been psychosis - probably due to swelling of the brain. Sound fun?

***GET VACCINATED!***

[ArtleyWilkins]

Doctors regularly see high levels of anxiety in COVID patients, even those whose symptoms aren’t all that severe otherwise. People who develop panic attacks who never previously had them - a teacher friend of mine had this happen. In severe patients like my husband, the added factor of truly not being able to breathe creates its own level of serious anxiety.