Oh Noes! A Vaccine Didn't Kill Me!

[joreth]

OMG did you know that millions of people are NOT DYING from vaccines every day!

Srsly!  And, like, most of them don't even experience the side effects that the vaccine companies WARN YOU ABOUT!

It's scary!  I mean, like these scientists are all like messing around with viruses and stuff and looking at them and analyzing them and cutting them up and rearranging them and doing spooky things with them!  They totally take them apart and then build these chemicals that trick your body into thinking it has the virus when it really doesn't so that your body makes its own ANTIBODIES against the viruses.

They actually put these chemical mixtures into your body at FRACTIONS of the potency of the REAL VIRUS!  And your body BELIEVES it and starts producing ANTIBODIES!!!!!  They're, like, building this microsopic army INSIDE you, using YOUR OWN IMMUNE SYSTEM!

And some people even have REACTIONS to them!  Really, I'm not making this up guys, they even ADMIT it!

It's totally freaky what science is up to these days.  I just had the Hepatitus B vaccine and I was told to expect soreness around the injection site and maybe even a light fever!  Then, they even said, right to my face, that I should call them if I got a fever over 99 degrees or if I was vomiting!  How scary is that!  I'm totally going to avoid dying of a virus that causes painful and prolonged liver failure, but I might get a fever instead!  That's just whacked!

What's even more crazy, tho, is that I'm totally not sick or sore or anything!  And that happens to thousands of people ALL THE TIME!

Dude, science is scary and has just manipulated my body into being all defensive and stuff against a deadly virus.  That's totally wierd!

Comments

[leora.livejournal.com]

I got vaccinated against hep b a while ago. I think the effect I experienced was periodically feeling an itchiness at the site where the needle went in, going why is my arm irritated, oh yeah, I just got vaccinated. But I may be conflating it with other times when I got blood drawn. My arm is always irritated for a bit at a location where a needle is stuck into me.

One of the risks of any vaccine given by needle is fainting, because as they say, some percentage of the population is just prone to fainting if stuck with a needle. Fortunately, I'm not.

I've never experienced a significant side effect from a vaccination. I was a little worried with the hep b vaccination, because I got it at a time when I wasn't in normal health. I do worry about a lot of things that are fine for most people, because my body is odd in unknown ways, so I never know if it's going to interact in some bad way. I was quite worried before my last surgery about the anesthesia. But fortunately, it all went as it usually does, and I was vaccinated and am unharmed.

[joreth]

I'm not really sure why I never got the Hep vaccine before, except that I think the doctors habitually misunderstood me.

When I was around 12 or so, I had mono, and contracted Hep A and strep throat as secondary infections. At least, I'm guessing it's Hep A, I don't really remember that summer and I don't think my mom knows there are 3 different types. Anyway, when I give my history to the doctors, I explain this part and say that I'm not sure which one it was, they all say it was probably type A because of the severity (or lack thereof) and method of contraction.

But no one ever offered me the vaccine for B and it never occurred to me to ask. Well, today I did ask if I needed the B vax with my history and she said they'll do a profile on me to see if I needed it, but it wouldn't hurt to get it anyway, and the B vax covered A too so why not? It was included in my testing costs so I did it. I'm interested to see the profile results to see if it was even necessary or not, and if it's not, then I won't bother getting the two following shots, but if it is, then I've already begun the process.

But the doctor, when she looked back through my file, saw a notation that said I already had the vaccine, and I'm pretty sure that I haven't. They didn't even start making it until 1991 and it didn't become mandatory until 1997, and the last time I remember receiving a bunch of mandatory vaccines was in 1989 before entering high school, and that most definitely was not a 3-part schedule like the HepB vax is.

I can definitely understand why you might be concerned about side effects with your health issues. Fortunately, the medical community is required to notify us of the possible side effects before we take any particular medication or vaccine, so that those few individuals who have allergies or other complications can rely upon the herd immunity that the rest of us are supposed to be providing.

Minor cuts and scrapes always itch me a bit too - I was told as a kid that it was part of the healing process as the skin reknit itself over the wound. I thought that was pretty neat.

[leora.livejournal.com]

I do worry more about vaccines because of my complicated health problems, but I also worry more about the actual things one can be vaccinated against because of my health problems. So, I was more inclined to get the hep b vaccination because I really don't want my body having to try to fight off hep b when it's already dealing with enough problems. So, I figured it was even more important for me than for most people.

I am quite glad that my body does seem to deal with vaccinations normally. I hope it continues to, as I want a tetanus booster (probably a DTAP as that's been recommended to me by a friend, that would cover tetanus, ptursis (sp?) aka whooping cough, and diptheria, if I recall correctly). I would much rather risk a fever than risk tetanus. Tetanus ~scares~ me.

I'm glad I already have several vaccinations, such as to polio. Although I do want to talk to a doctor about chicken pox. I'm in a really awkward situation with regards to chicken pox. Unlike almost everyone, I don't know whether or not I have immunity. It really could be either way, and without testing to check, I can't find out. But I'd like to find out before having too much exposure to children. At least I'm female, statistically chicken pox is worse for males. But I am old enough that chicken pox is likely to be more severe for me if I do get it. It would suck to have serious health problems from chicken pox of all things.

I almost drowned once. And one of the strongest thoughts I had was that that would be such a stupid way to die. How annoying it would be to die of something I could so easily have prevented (given my particular situation and why I was drowning). I think it has left me with a strong aversion to dying from something easily preventable. I know that I will die eventually, but I really don't want it to be from tetanus or chicken pox. It just feels too stupid. I don't want a stupid death.

[joreth]

Very good point about being more important for you than most people with your health problems. I suppose the herd immunity is really most important for people for whom the side effects are as bad or worse than the potential exposure to the actual virus, since exposure to the virus is only possible while the reaction is likely.

I had whooping cough once, and I would whole-heartedly recommend anyone getting a vaccine for it. I coughed for months and one of the more unpleasant effects of the coughing is that it triggers the vomiting response simply because of overuse of the diaphragm and stomach muscles (basically, they kinda start spasming).

The worst part is that trigger never goes away. I continue to have vomiting spells whenever I get a cough. It's bad enough when I'm around smokers, where I can just remove myself from the smoke, throw up in the bathroom once and be done with it, but when I catch an actual cough bug, I spend weeks coughing and vomiting.

My last cough lasted 7 weeks until I finally got into see the doctor and got some antibiotics. Happened just in time for the cough to go away *2 days after Frolicon*. Most unpleasant.

[firerose10.livejournal.com]

Speaking as someone who had LESS than a normal immunity to chicken pox and got the vaccine - it's worth it! I never caught chicken pox as a kid and apparently, was never even near people who had it, since my counts were so low as to be statistically non-existent, so once I had my kiddo, I knew it was something I had to be afraid of. I got the shot, as did my daughter and THEN caught the virus! But for both of us, it was more of a minor irritation than an illness. I was 26, so it could have been very bad and left me with a severe potential of shingles, but all I had was a few days of itchiness, like I've been told you get with poison ivy (lucky me - I'm immune to that). The kiddo had it a bit worse - she actually need about 2 tablespoons worth of calamine over the course of a week-long infection. When I got tested, the doctors told me my immunities were so low, that if I were to be in the same room as someone who was still contagious, I would likely get the most severe case possible, plus shingles. Personally, IMO, if you have never had chicken pox, or just can't remember if you've ever had it - get the vaccine... VERY minor side effects and VERY major benefits if you need them.

[leora.livejournal.com]

I'm in a weird position. I have had chicken pox... but I was a very young baby and breastfeeding. I had a case so mild that my mother says I didn't seem bothered by it in any way. There is the possibility that I was getting immunity through her breast milk. The question is, did my immune system, so young and still developing, actually manage to create an immunity of its own? I've been told there is no way to know without getting tested to see if I have the antibodies, so that's my intention. I have so many severe health problems that I have trouble remembering to deal with the normal stuff. But on my to-do is asking a doctor to test me for immunity or just give me the vaccine.

I also do wonder about the possibility that what I had wasn't actually chicken pox. I don't know how possible it'd be for something else to get misdiagnosed as it. Especially given that I apparently had a very small number of pox (fewer than 10). I've never seen chicken pox, so I don't know too much about it. I'm the youngest of my siblings, and the rest all had it before I was one year old.

Just a weird situation. But since there's a vaccine these days, it seems like a good precaution.

[firerose10.livejournal.com]

While, I am no medical doctor, between my current nursing classes and my own medical issues, I've learned quite a bit about immunities and diseases. IMO, if your insurance will cover the testing - go for it, but I'll bet you won't have sufficient immunity to keep you safe if you get a good exposure. If it won't - the vaccine will do nothing bad if you already have the immunities...

And it is possible to misdiagnose - the pox are just small, scabby, itchy spots. There are fungal infections that would look the same, other viruses that can present with similar symptoms, as well as the possibility of a bad case of skin rash that can mimic the pox. Not knowing your age, also a lot of doctors would just jump to that conclusion if it even looked like it was pox for many years. It's only been in the last 15 years (with the advent of of the whole vaccine stupidity) that docs are regularly testing to verify the diagnosis.

[leora.livejournal.com]

Oh I'm nearly certain I wasn't tested. I find it massively likely it was just a visual diagnose, possibly influenced by who else I'd been near had chicken pox. I don't really know details, and I don't really trust my parents' memories. They've told me things before about my medical history that I am sure were actually one of my siblings. We're a large family and it's an understandable mistake, but not ideal for actually being sure of one's data.

I don't know if insurance will cover it. If not, I can probably pay for it out of pocket at some point, but I'll need to budget it. But it can be done.

I really wish doctors had been more direct with me when I was a young child. I actually remember a great deal of what I was told and what my medical experiences and history were. My records have been lost, and my parents are often in error. But I have no memory of being a baby. Any medical issues within my first few years all have a good heaping of doubt mixed into them.

It wasn't really that relevant when I was younger, because the chicken pox vaccine either wasn't around or wasn't used much, so I just hoped for the best. But now I'm hoping to get myself any vaccination I might have need for. I forgot to bring it up the last time I was bringing up vaccinations with a doctor, which is why I only ended up getting the hepatitis b vaccination. They were having a shortage for the tetanus vaccination, and they thought I was good on everything else. I didn't think of chicken pox at the time. But I am quite pleased with the hep b vaccination. One less horrible disease to worry about.

[firerose10.livejournal.com]

hear hear! There's a reason I'm working on getting the kiddo the full dose of Gardisil while she's not had any exposure to HPV.

Insurance usually will cover vaccines even when they won't cover the testing to find out if they are necessary, so if you have any chance of being exposed to the pox, go for it ASAP.

[zaiah.livejournal.com]

I'm curious about what is included in the HepB profile - I know working with kids at public schools, residential placement facilities, swimming pools, and with fosterlings qualified me and all of my family.

My HMO does not have me as qualified to receive Gardasil because I am older than the recommended profile. This frustrates me! Their expectation about my exposure in that sort of thinking pisses me off! Grr! When school slacks off a little I need to go after these other issues.

[joreth]

The reason why you don't qualify is because the FDA has not yet given approval for Gardasil to be administered to over age 26. The current belief is that it is not very effective in women who have already been exposed, and by age 26, they assume you've been exposed.

Fortunately, recent studies have shown that women up to age 45 still receive a 91% benefit to the vaccine and when they conclude their 4-year longitudinal study in November (as per the FDA request), Merk will reapply for approval for the age group 27-45.

However, if you're willing to pay out of pocket, some doctors are willing to administer Gardisil "off-label", which only means that they aren't guaranteeing anything and it's not covered by insurance.

I went to the county clinic for the HepB vaccine, and the doctor there was under the impression that EVERYONE should get it, so she gave me the vaccine the same day as she had me take the profile to see if it would be necessary. I don't have the profile results back yet, but I started the 3-part vaccine schedule anyway. When I get the profile results back, I'll let you know :-)