What does it imply if I don’t get unintended effects after getting my COVID vaccine?
Can an up to date COVID vaccine shield in opposition to lengthy COVID?
Are the up to date COVID vaccines free?
When precisely ought to I get an up to date COVID vaccine?
You may get any of the three up to date pictures as quickly as you’re capable of e book an appointment, however if you happen to have been vaccinated in opposition to COVID not too long ago, you’ll wish to wait no less than two months after your final dose, the FDA says. That method you’ll be able to maximize the quantity of safety you’ve gotten in opposition to the virus.
Should you’ve by no means been vaccinated in opposition to COVID, you’ll solely want one dose of the up to date Pfizer or Moderna shot and two doses of the up to date Novavax vaccine taken three weeks aside to be thought-about “updated.”
Desirous about ready till later within the 12 months so your enhance of immunity can final a bit longer into the winter season? You most likely shouldn’t, Inessa Gendlina, MD, PhD, an infectious illness doctor on the Montefiore Well being System in New York, tells SELF.
Consultants nonetheless can’t reliably predict when COVID ebbs and flows like they will for the flu, she says. So that you wish to give your physique sufficient time to develop contemporary immunity to COVID (no less than just a few weeks after vaccination) earlier than the virus spreads much more within the fall and winter months. Plus, “we’re definitely having a stronger and extra extended summer season wave of COVID proper now, so I wouldn’t wait,” says Dr. Gendlina, who’s additionally an affiliate professor of medication on the Albert Einstein Faculty of Drugs.
And though the virus spreads all 12 months and might spike randomly, Dr. Cohen says that COVID-related hospitalizations and deaths are nonetheless the very best within the winter, “so getting essentially the most up to date vaccine previous to these months continues to be advisable.”
I not too long ago had COVID. Ought to I nonetheless get an up to date COVID vaccine?
Sure! A earlier case of COVID, regardless of how way back it was, doesn’t provide you with lifelong immunity to the virus. That stated, chances are you’ll wish to delay vaccination by no less than three months if you happen to not too long ago examined optimistic, the CDC says. The probabilities you get sick once more inside that point are slim (however not inconceivable!) as a result of it takes about that a lot time to your immunity to wane. So ready a bit can assist you actually make the most of the safety your an infection gave you.
You probably have a weakened immune system, dwell with somebody who’s weak to extreme COVID, or there’s a surge of infections in your space, the CDC says you would get the up to date vaccine a bit sooner if you happen to’d like.
Can I get the COVID and flu pictures on the identical time?
Sure, you’ll be able to—and it is best to, Dr. Gendlina says. Not solely is it completely protected to take action, however it’s additionally extra handy to make one appointment and get them each out of the best way. (In actual fact, a mix vaccine for each viruses is presently within the works.)
Dr. Gendlina says it doesn’t matter if you happen to select to get each pokes in the identical or totally different arms. But when you’re liable to soreness, then chances are you’ll wish to get the vaccines on separate arms, or no less than in your nondominant one, so your ache isn’t too intense.
And whereas we’re on the subject, you may also get a single dose of the RSV vaccine along with your COVID and flu pictures, the CDC says. (The RSV jab is a one-and-done deal, so that you don’t have to get it yearly!) The shot is advisable for all adults ages 75 and older and for these ages 60–74 who’re at excessive threat of extreme RSV, which is a standard respiratory virus that may be particularly harmful for infants and older adults.