Tale of 2 Vaccines
I got the text that my vaccine was scheduled for Sunday April 4th at noon.
I was so excited and responded YES immediately.
Ok, that WAS Easter, but hey, if they want me at Six Flags at noon on Easter...
I AM THERE!
Then I got a text that my NEW appointment was Friday April 9th and M&T Stadium.
Then I got a confirmation for Noon on the 4th.
all of that happened from March 26 to March 31.
So I called the Health Dept on the 31st to make sure I knew what day and where to go. I surely didn't want to miss it!
A spoke to a lovely lady who said there was no record of M&T appointment and the 4th at Six Flags was my 'Official' appointment.
Then I got a text, at 10am on the 4th, that my NEW appointment was for Friday the 9th of April at 845am. Ok, now I get to spend Easter luncheon with the family. Yay!
The 5th, Monday, I got a text that my NEW appoint was scheduled for Tuesday the 6th.
I responded YES. Then realized it was for M&T , not Six Flags.
And now I had not 1, but 2 vaccines scheduled!!!
What a dilemma... ok, not really.
I went to M&T on Tuesday the 6th at 845am!
And this is how that appointment went...
Today I got the first Pfizer vaccine in my right arm. Vax 2 is scheduled for 5/5/21 at 945am.
I was really excted and nervous to get this vaccine. As I sit here, in the waiting area post shot, I am trying to catch my breath and get my heart rate down. It was 100 but is now 82 after 15 minutes of rest. The heart rate is still irregular and I have trouble catching my breath with the mask on.
I arrived at 830am and received my vaccine at 917am. It was 45 minutes of constant walking.
Walking across the parking lot to the entrance.
Walking through the lower promenade of the stadium in the que, like lemmings, or perhaps more like sheep being herded toward an unknown fate. The only difference is that unlike sheep, we are all here of our own accord. The hundreds of us in this never ending, continuous, moving line that winds it's way around and around, back and forth, throughout the stadium concourse, toward a big, white tent.
At some point, an iPad is thrust into our hands and we are told to enter our information for pre-screening.
Just before reaching the tent, the end of the journey?
Someone takes the tablet and asks us the standard questions we have all grown accustomed to...
have you traveled out of the US, been in contact whit someone with COVID, had COVID symptoms in the past 14 days...
The same ones we are asked every where we go in these COVID times.
Finally, at the entrance of the tent, is another que.
Id in hand, we are directed, one by one, to a registration desk... mine is Lucky 7!
My pre-screening is pulled up on the screen and I am officially registered and cleared to receive my vaccination today!
YAY!
Onward and Upward!
Yes, upward. At this point I have walked continuously for nearly 30 minutes and am both exhausted and winded.
My head has been pounding at a level 10 since waking this morning and the truck running in my head is at full throttle.
I have new swelling in my feet, especially the right, with bruises I cannot find a reason for.
I gained 3 pounds overnight, again, for no apparent reason and my gums have been bleeding off and on all morning.
The walking with a mask on, no feeling in my feet and a feeling of swelling in right knee growing as I've moved with the herd, is not easy and the irregular heartbeat and muffled breathing makes the fatigue more pronounced as I go.
At last... there is an escalator to the injection center on the second floor concourse. And at the top... Another que.
But, the end is now truly in sight!
There, laid out across the entire concourse, is the vaccination center. Rows of desks where the injection is given, and just beyond, rows of chairs where those who have been vaccinated go to wait their required post-vax time to ensure they have no adverse reactions.
My turn to step up is at hand and I am assigned B4.
Mary and Greg are the wonderful nurses who attend to me. They double check my personal data. Ask about preexisting conditions. I tell them Lupus, Fibromyalgia and long term COVID.
Apparently this puts me into a high risk category. I MUST wait for 30 minutes after the injection in a special section by the medical team.
And it is done! Mary administered the vaccine with such skill it was not even noticed. Greg was so kind and thoughtful, making sure I was seated in the proper area and the medical team knew I was a long hauler and to be extra mindful of my status.
As I sat there, listening to the radio that had been playing since I had entered the stadium at 830am... I heard one of 'Our' songs. It was the second one that had played since I had entered the stadium at 830am. It was comforting. It made me feel like maybe, just maybe, John was there keeping watch over me to make sure I was OK. To let me know he is still with me, even now, nearly 3 years later.
I hope that is true and by the unusual timing of certain songs, just when I need them, I think that perhaps he really is speaking to me in our way, through music.
My 30 minutes was up! 947am and I could leave. I headed down the stairs, slowly, holding onto the railing for dear life.
At the bottom I was ushered out thru a large metal gate and into the outer courtyard of the stadium where there are huge statues of Johnny Unitas and Ray Lewis, both wearing masks.
I snapped a picture of each, I mean you don't have to be a Ravens fan to recoginize, and appreciate great players, right?
I slowly made my way on the reverse route to my car. Got in and took several minutes to catch my breath and feel steady enough to make the 20 minute drive home.
About halfway home, I began to get dizzy and feel very warm with palpitations.
Luckily, I made it home and did a FB live update before the nausea, vomiting and diarrhea started. Which was rapidly followed by debilitating pain every where , a headache at level 20 and dizziness that made my balance so bad I could not get out of bed for 5 days.
The physical and mental exhaustion was at active COVID level, like when I was on isolation in the basement in November and December. When it hits, like a tidal wave without warning, it is much like I imagine a marathon runner feels after a hard run race.
It was so bad for the first week I could not function well at all. Today is 2 weeks post vaccine and I am still experiencing debilitating exhaustion, memory gaps and confusion and body aches from head to toe off and on randomly throughout each day, never knowing what will hurt and how badly, from day to day. it has taken me 2 weeks to be able sit here and write this out, but I have been making voice recordings, dictation if you will, into my phone over these 2 weeks so that I could accurately transcribe my experience for those who are curious as to how I am doing.
And that, my dear friends, is where I am today.
Less severe symptoms than for the week following Vax #1, but not yet down to the pre- vax somewhat manageable levels.
The statistics show approx 35% of long haulers find some relief from the vaccine, approx 52% have no change in symptoms and the remaining approx 13% experience relapse.
Lucky me... I am, yet again, in the rare and unpredictable group for this Long Term COVID.
I am getting Vax #2 may 5th. Fingers crossed I don't end up in bed for a week again... and maybe I'll be one of the lucky ones who gets better and is able to live , if not a normal life, then something a bit closer to what I once lived.
Until next time... Love from Dawn- The Crazy Covid Lady
