COVID Vaccine Taken

  Tom and I have spent nearly the past year by ourselves. We get out some: groceries, eating out infrequently, occasional shopping trips. But for the past year we have stayed mostly here. And when we leave the house, of course we are masked.

 No one wants to live through a pandemic. But that is better than dying during one.

 COVID-19 worries color our life right now. Worldwide 2.3 millions have died and there are 105 million cases of the virus. In the United States  alone, 450,000 of our fellow Americans have died; 26.9 million have been infected. Those are the newest statistics I could find.

 I have been waiting for one of the vaccines to become available to my age group (70+). Last Monday (02/01) Ohio opened up that group to eligibility. But where to get the shot? I have been watching various websites for an appointment. I even managed to get my name onto one list.

 One morning this past week Tom received an  email that CVS in Germantown had some openings. I quickly got on their website. All appointments were already taken. But they suggested their Eaton location as a possibility. I found a slot open and I booked it.

 I asked Tom to come along with me, both in hopes of making it easier to find the drug store and also to drive me home if I didn't feel well. We arrived about a half an hour early.

 Sign-up went easily and I was sent to "Aisle 17" to get into line. The line was short. Only a dozen or so were in front of me. When I reached the front of the line I was asked a few questions and my temperature was taken.

 Finally, seated for my vaccine, my left arm was swabbed with alcohol and the shot administered. It was painless.

 Afterwards I was told to wait 15 minutes before leaving to make sure I didn't have an allergic reaction. I continued to feel fine.

 For the next nine hours I noticed no side effects at all. My arm didn't even feel sore. But after I went to bed, I began to have minor chills and a slight headache and this went on for about two hours. My arm also began to be sore.

 Now, the next morning, I feel a little worse for the wear ... but it is nothing compared to contracting COVID. I will happily endure a little discomfort for being able to avoid the disease. Though I was initially set-up to have the Moderna vaccine, I was given the Pfizer one (that would have been my choice had I been given the option). Why? Because it has been administered longer and the most experience lies there. The 95% effectiveness seems a real plus.

 In three weeks  I'll be back for the second and final dose. I understand that's when the side effects are most noticeable. So we'll cancel Saturday morning breakfast with Bob and I have the luxury of being able to take a day off as needed.

 Ohio, by the way, has recorded 11,571 deaths and shows 915,000 cases of COVID. Montgomery County, where we live, has had 467 deaths and 45,256 cases of the virus. Are the numbers low enough to go without the vaccine? Perhaps, but not taking the vaccine keeps the peril present and does nothing to held achieve "herd immunity".

With a 2019 population of 11.69 million, Ohio residents show 7.8% of the population infected. Some people call the risk low (less than one out of ten) but it's enough to concern me. The vaccine is free and the risk seems relatively low.

 So I am proud to be  among those vaccinated.