I have other health issues in addition to a-fib, including vax allergies & am reticent & petrified about getting the Covid jabs. One past vax swelled me up like a balloon so we turned around & went immediately back to the doc for a surprise anaphylactic treatment ........ & after a different past vax for something else, I woke up deaf in one ear, a rare but noted side effect!!!
My biggest fear is that I'll go into a-fib after a jab, my meds won't control my afib, & I will need to go to emergency & they won't be able to get my heart into NSR so I'll need more & more involved treatment--yes, I realize I'm projecting my fears and a worse case scenario, but please realize, to me all this has real probability. It's more than just feeling punky for a week or less.
A very dear friend who is a nurse with decades of experience suggested that I *not* get jabbed because of my medical history & to be as safe as possible by masking, distancing, not going into crowds etc. My personal doctor has said it's up to me, but he won't weigh in one way or another.
Of course what other regular people post here and there is that getting Covid is worse than the jabs, but what about the people who are treated successfully with interventions, once diagnosed, and they don't die and they aren't long haulers? Of course it's taking a chance, but for me, getting vax'd is taking a chance too. I guess I'm looking for encouragement that I'm making the right decision, for me to wait a bit on the jabs. Thanks for reading, please be gentle.
Doggie Momma
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Doggiemomma
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It’s always a personal decision and everyone is different and reacts differently.
My philosophy is that you are the best expert on you, if you feel that the vaccine is going to cause you more problems then of course don’t get it. I don’t think anyone here would ever criticise you for doing what you think right for you.
Because I have a different experience to you doesn’t mean either of us is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’.
And even after the vaccine we need to mask indoors and to have some space. You go well.
It does seem as if you are allergic to vaccines. It may be that the vaccination. Clinic would say you can’t have it but in your shoes I would ask someone who has full details of your medical history particularly which vaccines you reacted to and when ( as there are different types of vaccines now) and get an informed answer. If you get stressed Re AF then you’re more likely to induce it - don’t forget many who are in permanent AF are getting vaccinated. Main problem fir you is whether you are allergic to the new type of vaccine. Hope you get some answers. You could contact vaccination clinic about it too but I think your past history is vital fir decision making
Like you I have strong reservations about being vaccinated . However I am not worrying about it much. There have been many studies now on how vitamin D levels are important for covid infection. The other day I listened to a podcast where a doctor in Oregon mentioned a large study of over 190,000 people where they found that those whose vitamin D level was over 55ng/mL had a 50% less chance of catching covid - not just having a milder case if they did catch it but catching it at all. This is a much larger population than the AZ, Pfizer and Moderna (put together) phase lll vaccine clinical trials used. What is more those trials were not designed to evaluate transmission but only how symptomatic an illness one got. Even now there is no definitive data on transmission reduction with the vaccines though they should be reducing transmission if the UK case figures are an indication. So I am relying on my 72ng / mL vit D level , masking and social distancing. My main worry for catching covid was when I had a hip replacement op in Dec before vaccination was even available here in France. Why not get your vit D level tested and supplement to get it above 55ng/ mL (138nmol/ l in uk measuring system) . I also take zinc and quercetin. You could also look up the research on Ivermectin as a prophylactic.
Thanks for the helpful info! I have bumped up my Vit D etc, but as for Ivermectin as a prophylactic, no doctor here will prescribe it, although we can pick up the Ivermectin paste for horses from a feed store. Nope, I'm not kidding about that.
My mum, who is the one with AF, feels the same. At 75 she was so relieved to get her first covid jab in January but unfortunately (after eventually being stable for two months after 3 emergency ambulance admissions from the GP surgery in the preceding two months when she was diagnosed and tried various med) she went into af in the early morning the next day, feeling rough on top of af rough. It's common for anyone to feel rough/flu like symptoms for a day after the covid or flu jab but I suppose it doesn't take too much to set off a precarious af heart. It only lasted for 24hrs but she can't face putting herself through it again which I completely understand as she has had such bad episodes when admitted previously at the time of diagnosis and getting her meds right back in the autumn and the GP warned her at that time how they had to get her an ambulance straight away as she could have a stroke or heart attack at any moment (as mum at the time was a bit hesitant and shocked as she went to the doctors with breathlessness and was a bit taken aback of the sudden seriousness of the situation although she did feel very poorly) sorry long ramble, first time on here. But basically she is extremely disappointed she feels unable to have a further covid jab and would rather be extra careful. I wonder if some of the af flare ups after covid jabs are milder in some people?
We can all only do what feels right for us, therefore that is the correct decision for your mum. Keeping safe and sensible in her interactions and using ongoing covid guidelines will help her. Best wishes.
Thank you. Mum doesn't go out much, maybe to the shop once every few weeks and we wear masks on short regular visits to her and to drop main shopping to her currently. I'm hoping some protection from her 1st jab will last a while although I know older adults especially should get extra jabs in autumn too and most likely every year. AF is a real obstacle to say the least.
So sorry to hear you are having this hassle on top of all your health issues. I would be speaking with a medic about this, do you have a cardiac consultant or arrhythmia nurse who could help you. I guess no medic really has a full answer as they wont want to commit and then get it wrong for you. Also the vaccines are new for covid so they cant have all the answers on this as yet.
I think your answer may be that your gut is telling you not to have it with good medical understanding of your own condition. Dont ever be pushed into anything because it appears to be the right thing as everyone else is doing it. Its what is right for you that matters. Have the courage of your own convictions, if in doubt then you probably have your answer. You are the orchestrator of your thoughts and actions have faith in yourself. Good luck, some of us here, me included, will have had similar dilemmas and we can only act on our own behalf.
Hi, when I went for my Pfizer I had omitted to mention that I am supposed to be allergic to penicillin (there is a slight doubt over this) so there was a short discussion about whether to go ahead or rebook for an AZ. As I tend to get AF when I have a virus and AZ seems to have some quite bad virusy symptoms I took a deep breath and went ahead with a 30 minute wait in case of a reaction. For the second jab I was asked if I had ever been admitted to hospital with an anaphylactic reaction (no). My reaction in both instances consisted of a tender lump on my arm for several days, any other symptoms such as tiredness could have been coincidence.
I don’t know if that is helpful to you at all as it seems you have a choice between a jab which can cause anaphylaxis and one which is likely to cause a mini COVID style reaction, can’t comment on other vaccine options.
Really it seems you need advice from a ‘proper scientist’ who understands the difference between various vaccines - I believe there are several different manufacturing methods.
I can understand your reaction as there is a much greater fear for you of really serious consequences. I know many people are terrified of an AF episode being triggered but I can’t help thinking they can’t be fully aware of the experience of having a severe COVID infection.
Best wishes (and don’t forget the mask is to protect other people, not you!) so keep on keeping your distance 💕
My daughter suffers with severe allergies and carries an epiPen. Although she is in her early thirties she had both Pfizer doses some time ago.
She has been working in an ICU throughout the pandemic.
She does a twelve and a half hour shift nursing covid patients before going home and sleeping in a separate bedroom to her partner.
She telephones me most days and sometimes she fights back tears when she has lost patients.
Things are getting better on her unit at the moment and she hasn't lost a patient in over a week.
She speaks of holding someone's hand when they ask if they are going to die and telling them they are going to do everything possible to keep them alive.
I'm sure if you asked her what you should do she would smile, maybe hold your hand and tell you to do what you think is best for you.
For me I would be going along with your nurse friend and try to stay super safe with mask etc, which you already do. Later you may be feel more comfortable about having it.
I totally agree with your second paragraph and have delayed getting the jab myself for just that reason - I wonder how many more of the 20K+ members of this Forum are doing the same, I suspect quite a few given the relief of reaching good QOL post AF. As has been mentioned no medic can give you safe assurances...my cardiologist tried this week!
I also don't want to be out of action as I am helping my wife recover from a stroke, who doesn't drive. My plan is a wait and watch policy to see if one vaccine comes out as favourite for AFers who have not had an episode for ages...maybe the one jab Johnson & Johnson will be a safer bet? Keep informed and I support you taking your own decision, which ever way you choose.
I have afib am hypothyroid and bmi 31 (male). I had the pfizer vaccination as did my wife who asthmatic. No issues for either of us. What you don't know is how your body would react to covid as it is such an individual disease.
I spoke to the cardiac nurses at St Bartholomews and they said that they had had some reports of palpitations after Covid vaccinations, but these always went after about a week. Other sources have said that the vaccination can trigger AF, but this is unlikely. I have noticed increased palpitations myself over the last few days (eight days after my second vaccination) but it is difficult to know whether they are vaccine -induced or not. There simply haven’t been enough studies done to say anything very precise about this. So the best available information available is that there is some probability of AF or palpitations occurring but it is likely to be low. And this has to be set against the risk from the virus which is greater.
Hi Doggiemomma, as others have said: Do what you feel is best for you. I am also holding back and have not had the vaccine yet, despite having had covid January this year. What a rough ride that was. Honestly, I don't know if I will ever have the jab. I have never even had the flu jab and cannot recall the last time I had the flu, it's so long ago. Considering your history of allergic reactions I would go with gut instinct as to what way you should go. There is no right or wrong decision. YOU KNOW WHAT IS BEST FOR YOURSELF Listen to your inner voice.
In the name of self preservation the more people who are protected by having jab the safer you will be in the long term. Play it safe though, and stay masked up.
If you have had covid you will have protection from that for at least 6 months and probably longer. Here in France people who have had covid are being advised not to get vaccinated for at least 6 months. My sister had covid at the end of Sept and got her first jab of the AZ vaccine less than 6 months later. She said she felt as bad as with the actual infection for a few days and had to stay in bed. Her second jab was ok though just a sore arm and some tiredness.
I have multiple food and drug allergies, asthma as well as paf. I decided that an allergic reaction was preferable to having covid. I also wanted Pfizer jab as I'd researched and didn't like AZ issues. I'm going for the second jab Friday as all was well with the first. It's a personal choice but I'm here to tell my story.
I agree about the AZ issues since it was noted in the new sources that AZ falsified data in order to get their vaccine out first. If they falsified data to get funded first, what else did they do? It has also not been approved for use in the USA.
I can only give you my own experience, which is that I had both Pfizer jabs with no side effects other than a sore arm both times and weirdly a sore throat for 24 hours after the second. No breakthrough of AF whatsoever. I was a bit nervous about that myself but at the time read lots of posts in here that were very reassuring about no AF reaction. I just wanted to encourage you if you do decide to get the vaccine.
Hi, I understand your anxiety, I was very nervous about having vaccine but decided getting COVID would be much worse.I was due to have 2 nd jab on Sunday am, but I started with an afib episode on Saturday pm which lasted 5 hours and was too shattered to go for my jab, the thing with afib is you never know when it is going to happen and I’m sure if I had had the episode 24 hours later I would definitely had blamed the vaccine!
Thank you to all who reached out and replied to me about this, and I will continue to check back and read additional posts and experiences and knowledge.
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