I had my first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine last Thursday. I had been holding off for a while because I was hoping to get Pfizer instead, but eventually I decided to register.
By then, many people in Hungary had already received their vaccinations, including my husband, and it had become possible to book an appointment directly and choose a vaccination site. Naturally, I picked the one closest to home. 😁
The place where I had my jab was a cardiology clinic. My appointment was at 10:21 a.m., but I arrived about fifteen minutes early.
First, we lined up to hand in a form we had filled out. They registered our arrival and asked us to wait, then called people in groups of five.
After that, I was given a small piece of paper with the vaccine batch number and the date of my second dose. Once I had that, I was called in for the injection itself. The whole process was quite quick — maybe ten minutes or so.
After the injection, we were asked to wait in a designated room for about fifteen minutes. I spent the time reading the information about possible side effects and wondering which ones I might end up with. 😁
Fifteen minutes later, I left the clinic. My husband was waiting patiently for me outside.
For most of the day, I felt fine. We even went for our usual evening walk.
It was only after I got home that the side effects started. First came the chills, then a slight fever, aching joints and a headache. My left arm, where I had received the injection, also felt swollen and sore.
I could not sleep properly and was still awake around four or five in the morning. Eventually I took some NeoCitran, which contained paracetamol, and finally managed to sleep until about ten.
When I woke up, I felt somewhat better. I answered a few work emails and then went back to bed. 😅
It took me roughly a day to feel normal again. By the time I wrote this, I was feeling quite well.
My second dose was scheduled for 29 July at the same clinic. I cannot say I was exactly looking forward to going through the side effects again, but I did want to get it over with.