The main reason I opted for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine was that it seemed to be much more predictable than the others in terms of side-effects induced when the second jab in the sequence irritates the immune system into creating many B and T-cells which will be the body’s long-term defence against infection.
From a casual survey of other Pfizer recipients, it seemed that the worst period was generally 24-36 hours after the second injection.
Of course, reactions are going to vary from person to person and I’ve seen anecdotes ranging from “nothing at all” to “I feel rather miserable and hit the wall”.
For me, I felt sore at the injection site almost immediately as I did with the first shot…as if a Missouri jackass had kicked me right there with their hind leg.
A few hours later, I felt generally sore all over but it wasn’t enough to make me even bother with a pain reliever…I’ve felt far worse having slept in the wrong position! I’d also say I was a little more fatigued than usual but still not much more than is usual.
The first real sign of anything approaching symptoms actually came round the +40 hour mark…forehead slightly warm to the touch and a little bit of coughing, congestion, and a slightly runny nose.
Fortunately, this was right at the point I was heading to bed anyway and I ended up sleeping through the rest of the symptomatic period with just some congestion in the morning roughly in line with what the yellow clouds of “death by pollen” cause for me round this time of year anyway.
Whilst your mileage may vary, I was definitely on the “all dressed up and no date” end of the spectrum…it truly was no big deal to push through the very minimal symptoms induced by the second injection and by later that morning, I felt perfectly normal (at least as normal as I will ever be!).
I think what might have helped was that I kept busy pretty much through the day so I really didn’t have time to really notice any symptoms much less be bothered by them. Another thing that I think helps tremendously is staying hydrated.
Good luck with your second dose…even if you’re more symptomatic than most, that’s actually still a good sign that your body is gearing up for the long-term defence (there are patients with B and T-cell immunity to SARS-1 that are still in play 17 years after the outbreak!).
But definitely don’t skip that second dose…the symptoms you might experience are nothing compared to the real thing!