I recently had the privilege of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine and I am absolutely exhilarated
that I am protected from the coronavirus and that I am doing my part to protect my community. I
have asthma and I have had pneumonia 5 times in my life! YES 5 time! All of those times were
simply from the flu so to say I was worried about getting the coronavirus is an understatement.
This vaccine has taken such a weight off my shoulders (and lungs).
The best way to receive the COVID-19 vaccine is to go to MyTurn.Ca.gov this will allow you to
set up your appointment at the Oakland Coliseum where they are vaccinating up to 6,000
people a day from 9a-7p seven days a week. You could also make an appointment through
Kaiser, Sutter, your county, or your city; however those options are only vaccinating healthcare
workers and people 65 and up at the time of me writing this. The Oakland Coliseum is accepting
appointments for healthcare workers, food and agriculture workers, and people working in
education (yay teachers its your turn!), plus individuals 65 and up. They post new appointments
sporadically throughout the day, so when you are eligible make sure to check a few times daily
to get an appointment.
Once you are able to get your vaccine your body will mount an immune response to it. Typically
after the first vaccine people feel achy in the arm they received the shot. The best way to
counteract this is to immediately a
fter your shot start moving your arm and drink a lot of water to
help with circulation.
Once you have received the first vaccine your body recognizes the coronavirus and has
antibodies for it, which means that when you receive the second dose your body will have a
stronger immune response. This looks different for everyone.
My first shot left my arm very achy from my hand all the way up my arm and into my neck, I felt
a bit run down and sore, kind of like I had worked out too much or that I had a bad hangover.
This started within an hour of receiving the shot and lasted for 36 hours. I knew the immune
response of the second shot would be stronger so I prepared for it! I made homemade chicken
noodle soup the day before. The day of I made sure to drink a lot of water. I brought ginger tea
with me so I could start drinking it on the way home. I spent the day treating myself as if I was
sick. This means I stayed warm and cozy under blankets, ate soup, drank hot tea, and took a
very long epsom salt bath. I also did acupuncture around my vaccine injection site. Even with all
these measures I still got some body aches and chills, but they didn’t last long and my arm did
not get as achy as the first time also compared to stories from others I thought my response was
milder.
When you are able to book your vaccine make sure to book an acupuncture appointment before
or after it so we can help you de-stress!
Thanks for looking out for our community.
build community | cultivate health
