# Shingles vax **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 12, 2022, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730 "2022-04-12T18:06:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MikeF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MikeF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeF)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/1 "2022-04-12T18:06:17Z")
I got my second shot yesterday and, man, is my arm sore. I also feel like crap today but am not sure if its a direct result of the shot or the fact that last night was the first on a memory foam topper. My arm hurt too much to do my usual adjusting so I slept (or tried too) at attention .Plus, that foam stuff is hot. I think she’s sending it back and canceling an order for a Nector mattress. Anyone with experience on one of those? Replacing a waterbed mattress, FWIW. Evidently, its too gross after 20 years. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/2 "2022-04-12T18:21:39Z")
I can’t comment on the mattress. About the shot, though, you can put an ice pack on your arm, and/or use an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory such as Tylenol or Aleve. I’ve talked to a few people who have had shingles, and they all said they’d rather have a sore arm than shingles. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/3 "2022-04-12T18:37:57Z")
We replaced our hard sided waterbed with a soft sided one last year and I highly recommend it. Soft sided beds are so much easier to dress and you can buy normal fitted sheets that will actually fit correctly. Our bed has two bladders so we each can control the heater for our side which is nice too. I also got my shingles shots last year and they made my arm hurt worse than the COVID jabs and I felt like shit for a couple of says. I once nursed a friend through a bought of shingles, feeling like shit for a couple of days instead of SUFFERING for weeks seems to be a pretty good deal in my book. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/4 "2022-04-12T18:41:44Z")
When I got my shingles shots, my arm was sore for about a week each time. Without a doubt the most painful injections I ever had to get. The COVID vax/booster was a cakewalk compared to the shingles vax. On the other hand, the shingles vax apparently doesn’t ever need a booster. My doctor says I’m done with shingles shots for the rest of my life. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/5 "2022-04-12T18:54:54Z")
> [@MikeF](#): > > man, is my arm sore. I also feel like crap today IME, that’s 2nd shingles shot. Pretty par for the course. Even a day or two if that though is still vastly preferable to the several week misery of shingles. Give the mattress topper another chance once you past the Shingrix reaction? Maybe with a cotton mattress pad? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/6 "2022-04-12T18:55:46Z")
Yeah, the second shingles shot was not at all fun. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/7 "2022-04-12T19:02:43Z")
Nothing to add about waterbeds, but about the shingles shots. . . yeah. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/8 "2022-04-12T19:57:01Z")
My shingles vaccinations didn’t hurt. My covid shots did not hurt, but my second booster hurt for three days. I believe it is the person giving the shot. Pharmacists tend to jam the needle in and slam down the plunger. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/9 "2022-04-12T19:59:55Z")
Since the shingles question has been well-answered, I’ll recommend a latex topper instead of memory foam. It’s much cooler and more comfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/10 "2022-04-12T20:10:14Z")
Well I had my second shingles shot yesterday myself and my arm is sore but not so much that I couldn’t sleep on it. Mainly because the torn rotor cup on the other shoulder is much more painful to sleep on, I wished it was only as sore as the shingles shot. But I was pretty wiped out the who day yesterday, just felt completely drained of energy. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/11 "2022-04-12T21:49:36Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > ut I was pretty wiped out the who day yesterday, just felt completely drained of energy. That was my main complaint as well. I stayed in bed the whole day after the second shot. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/12 "2022-04-12T23:29:07Z")
My arm hurt for several days after my second Shingrix shot last month. The lack of energy thing just lasted a couple of hours for me, thank goodness. ---
**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:** [April 12, 2022, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/13 "2022-04-12T23:52:42Z")
I’m scheduled for my second shingles shot a week from tomorrow. Not looking forward to it. I put it off for years, but figured this is the year of the vaccine. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/14 "2022-04-13T01:14:13Z")
I’m a whiny bitch, but I’d rather whine about a sore arm than suffer so much for weeks that I’m hurting too badly to bitch. Get it done. Plan to feel like shit for a day or so and feel blessed if you don’t. Everyone reacts differently and the OP is kinda self selecting for us whiny bitches so folks who didn’t have an issue won’t be bothered to post. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/15 "2022-04-13T01:25:40Z")
Crap. I need the shingles shot, my second covid booster, a colonoscopy, and a mammogram. Great frickin year I’ve got lined up here. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/16 "2022-04-13T01:27:44Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Great frickin year I’ve got lined up here. Even better, the shingles vaccination is a 2 shot regimen. Double the fun. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/17 "2022-04-13T01:33:18Z")
Prolly gonna need another COVID booster as well. And when was the last time you had a Tetanus shot? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/18 "2022-04-13T01:37:12Z")
Come on, you guys! Fortunately, my job right now is making me more miserable than all of the above, so I’m gonna take some time off and do them. 😬 ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/19 "2022-04-13T02:40:19Z")
Tetanus every ten years. A Tdap includes that and is especially important if you are around young grand children. I got one just before both of my grand babies arrived, so twice in the past 4 years. Best excuse for a shot ever! ---
**Author:** ![Retzbu\_Tox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/retzbu_tox/32/11829_2.png) [@Retzbu\_Tox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Retzbu_Tox)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730/20 "2022-04-13T03:01:06Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > My shingles vaccinations didn’t hurt. > My covid shots did not hurt \ > Pharmacists tend to jam the needle in and slam down the plunger. Ditto, ditto, and interesting theory! I don’t know that I have suffered the misfortune of someone doing that! > [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I need the shingles shot, my second covid booster, a colonoscopy, and a mammogram. No mammogram for me, but my colonoscopy appointment included an upper endoscopy, so they got me from both ends! 😁 I ain’t got no spleen, so they make me keep up to date on the meningitis and pneumonia vaxes, too! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shingles-vax/962730.md?page=2)