# Got my COVID shot **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Created:** [September 20, 2025, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231 "2025-09-20T17:42:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/41 "2025-10-11T02:59:32Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > My father, who was a very good research doctor, used to say that if you have to squint to determine if a difference is statistically significant, it’s not clinically significant. That could be it. They just may not have seen a preference. I do have a semi-paranoid idea that they (maybe means RFK Jr enemy Penn Professor Paul Offit, who was kicked off the FDA vaccine committee) thought they should hold off for maybe a year to see what sort of adverse reactions.are reported on the newer formulation. By itself, that sounds quite reasonable. The paranoid part is that AFAIK real experts do not really think the newer formula is riskier, but might be concerned not to give RFK Jr any more ammo to pounce on the University. I take the COVID shot every six months. If I do not hear advice otherwise, maybe I will try the new one at a pharmacy six months from now. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/42 "2025-10-11T03:13:54Z")
I refuse to have it done by a pharmacist, because I used to BE a retail pharmacist, and know how busy they are. I may go to the county health department in the next few weeks. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/43 "2025-10-11T03:50:29Z")
The pharmacy at Costco didn’t look super busy this time. (When i went last year it did.) They had someone getting a vaccination (hep B) before me, and then they gave someone else a prescription for their dog, and then they jabbed me, and i didn’t see any other customers around. They weren’t great about patient privacy. 😆 It was a little too easy to hear everything from the waiting area. So far, so good. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/44 "2025-10-11T15:39:37Z")
Oh wow, so far this is MUCH better than last time. My arm is sore and swollen, and i have a little achiness, but I’m mostly okay. Last time i was in bed for two days with lots of achiness, fever, chills, and general malaise. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/45 "2025-10-11T16:27:01Z")
I am so glad to hear how well you’re feeling! I’m definitely investigating this option for next time, too! ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/46 "2025-10-11T19:20:49Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Oh wow, so far this is MUCH better than last time. Great! The pharmacist just told me that Nexspike was the latest and greatest but I didn’t know anything about it until your post above. It sounds like a real improvement that could encourage people who were hesitant because of side effects. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2025, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/47 "2025-10-11T22:13:45Z")
Hooray!!!1! ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2025, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/48 "2025-10-12T15:18:13Z")
I had few side effects after my Moderna shot too. I wondered at it, because up till now I’ve always felt quite crappy the next day. This last time I was just a bit tired and had minimal soreness. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2025, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/49 "2025-10-12T16:33:18Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > … They weren’t great about patient privacy. 😆 … I got a flu shot at the local Costco yesterday (Covid will be in a week or so). I checked in at the pharmacy, but the shot itself was administered in a marquee-like tent on the main drag. Which made sense since the tech was doing walk-ups, but it felt more than a tad weird. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2025, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/50 "2025-10-12T17:24:30Z")
I’ve been checking the Sask Health Authority for covid guidelines. When I checked today, here’s what it said: > [@](#): > > ### 2025-26 Fall Immunization Eligibility > > The following groups are eligible: > > All Saskatchewan residents ages six months and older are eligible to receive free influenza and COVID-19 vaccines. Children aged six months to four years can only be immunized at SHA influenza and COVID-19 clinics, public health offices, or by a physician or nurse practitioner. > > Getting flu and COVID-19 vaccines is especially important for people most at risk of serious illness, and their caregivers. Those most at risk of contracting respiratory illness(and may requiring additional doses) are: > > - adults aged 65 or older, > - people with chronic health conditions or compromised immune systems, > - children under five, > - pregnant individuals, and > - residents in personal care homes and long-term care. So I’ll be checking at my local pharmacy to see about getting vaxed. That’s where I went last year. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2025, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/51 "2025-10-12T17:26:45Z")
Now I’m curious whether you had Spikevax or NextSpike. If you have your paperwork (or info in your portal or state vaccine registry) you can probably tell. ---
**Author:** ![teelabrown](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teelabrown/32/8412_2.png) [@teelabrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teelabrown)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2025, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/52 "2025-10-12T19:12:19Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Now I’m curious whether you had Spikevax or NextSpike. I just checked - it was NextSpike. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2025, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/53 "2025-10-19T11:08:08Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > Maybe it’s because I’m in California – I was able to make an appointment on CVS’s website and get the latest vaccine without a prescription just like I have previous years. I just had to attest that I had one of the risk factors on the FDA’s list IIRC, people over 65 don’t need a prescription for COVID here-- but at any rate, I wouldn’t have gotten it that day because I was getting over a cold, and couldn’t answer “Yes” to the “Do you feel well today?” question. I was mostly OK, but not top form. No worries. Texted my Dr. through the med practice’s website, and he called in the prescription. On Oct. 13, I went into pick up some stuff, and got both COVID & flu. That puts me up-to-date on everything. I got DTP in 2018, and pneumonia & shingles last year. I’m not old enough for RSV, because I have 0 risk factors. At least, that’s what I was told. Maybe I should check that out. At any rate, every time I go to the pharmacy, they ask me if I want to schedule vaccines. I’ve gotten every vaccine for the last 3 years from them. Sheesh. You’d think that could pop up on the computer screen or something “This is a good customer; stop annoying her.” ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2025, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/54 "2025-10-19T11:43:42Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Even if they were trained to give shots, it’s not like their primary duties. Yeah, I’ll need a nurse. Giving shots isn’t a nurse’s primary duty either, and they’ll get angry if you suggest that it is. Giving an IM shot requires at most one of their thousands of hours of nurse’s training. _At most_. Now, if we’re talking about starting an IV, a pro will definitely give you a safer and more comfortable experience, but IM shots are a cakewalk. I’ve done my own at home, it’s not big deal at all. But as long as you’re not harming anyone, and you’re only inconveniencing yourself, carry on. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2025, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/55 "2025-10-19T13:01:24Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > Now, if we’re talking about starting an IV, a pro will definitely give you a safer and more comfortable experience, but IM shots are a cakewalk. I’ve done my own at home, it’s not big deal at all. Yeah, I’m very fussy about who sticks needles into my veins. I prefer a professional phlebotomist. Someone who does exactly that all day long. But for an IM shot, I’m happy with anyone who’s had a little training, and in a pinch, i believe i could do it to myself with written instructions. Anyway, i was surprised at how long my arm felt sore. Like, it was 3 or 4 days when it was sore enough to be a little disabling, and i still felt it for nearly a week. Still, it was better than 2 days of fever and chills and malaise. I’m scheduled for a flu shot in a week. Hopefully, that will be less traumatic. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2025, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/56 "2025-10-20T01:16:17Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I’m scheduled for a flu shot in a week. Hopefully, that will be less traumatic. NOT discouraging you, but I was told that the flu shot this year was worse than the modern Moderna Covid shot. I can’t tell, since I did both at the same time and in the same arm, but that’s largely true of my (small) group of IRL responders. But my simul-shot this year were slightly better than my Covid shots of years past. So… 🤞 ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2025, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/57 "2025-10-20T01:20:15Z")
I found the new COVID shot painful for several days, while the flu shot wasn’t an issue. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2025, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/58 "2025-10-20T01:31:39Z")
Wow. I had both shots at the same time a couple of weeks ago (different arms) and had absolutely no issues with either one. No soreness, no ill effects. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2025, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/59 "2025-10-20T01:41:51Z")
My flu shot hurt for the first time. It hurt for days and there was a pink flush near it. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2025, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231/60 "2025-10-20T20:50:38Z")
I had both at once this year. Last time, I felt miserable for a day, but this time I was fine except for the usual sore arm. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-my-covid-shot/1023231.md?page=4)