Flu shot problem?
 

I got my first flu shot this morning. Immediately-- and I mean, as the needle was leaving my arm-- I was dizzy and sick. Ten minutes later, I threw up everything I had in me, then spent the next little while dryheaving. I'm still feeling bad even after sleeping all afternoon, and I've managed to keep down food. And my arm is KILLING me. :sad:
My question for y'all is, has anyone else had this reaction to a flu shot? How long did it last?

Please note: My question is NOT whether you agree with the vaccination program, or whether the government is trying to control me, or if you think I've been injected with autism-causing nanobots and will spontaneously explode.

Most common sideeffects to the flu shot take a while to appear. At least 6 to 12 hours, in general.

Such an immediate reaction is more likely an allergic reaction. Are you allergic to eggs?

Nope, eggs are my friends.

For a reaction this fast, the two possibilities are a bad batch of vaccine or allergic reaction. Reactions to the vaccine itself take longer, so I would look to see if you are allergic to any of the components of the specific flu shot you received.

I would check with your doctor and see what they say.

Possible psychosomatic response? Ever have this reaction to other shots like tetanus or other flu vacs? If not, then I'd discuss with your primary care provider or the agency that administered the flu vac...I've personally never had that sort of reaction to a shot of any type...hope you're feeling better.

Sorry dear but it is unlikely that this is a reaction to the flu vaccine at all. What this sounds like is a Vasovagal reaction. These often occur when people present for minor procedures such as injections, blood draws, piercings, nosebleed cautery and the like. It is just your bodies response to stress, pain and activities that you don't like. Often it can be helped if you eat something light beforehand. In the future I would recommend that you keep a cool drink nearby, ask for a cool damp rag(paper towel even) to place on your wrists, lay down during procedures and arise very slowly. The reaction took place much too quickly afterward to be attributed to an allergy to the medication. I wouldn't pass on the flu shot in the future, just let the clinical staff know of your reaction so that they can help you through it better in the future.

As far as the muscle soreness goes, what often happens is that the medication is given into a very tensed up muscle. (hard to avoid at times) This causes the injection material to be bound up within the muscle tissue and can take a while to work out. Massage the affected area and do try to use the arm, it will help disperse the vaccine solution through your tissues and the soreness will more quickly resolve. There is no harm in applying ice to the are either. Hope that helps.

Yup, that sounds right. It sounds a lot like a stress reaction. A lot of people present with similar (though usually milder) symptoms to those which you describe when getting ANY sort of innoculation, blood test, etc.

i have never gotten the flu shot. i've had the flu maybe 5 times.

when i got sick as a kid, i never took Tylenol, Advil, antibiotics, or anything else. i found myself to get sick alot less than other kids of the same age.

think about it.

edit: i thought the flu vaccine was the flu. i thought they purposely gave it to you to build a tolerance. someone educate me.

Hi Stella, sorry to hear about your illness. I think everything said above about reaction time is quite true; it was too fast to be the vaccine itself, but could be an allergy to the carrier, preservatives or similar, but is more likely to be a reaction to the stress of the environment and someone sticking a piece of metal into you while you're nervous about the procedure and the possible illness or side-effects.

Most vaccines these days are denatured.

Essentially, they grow live virus in an egg, then harvest the virus and treat it to "kill" it (can't kill something that is not alive itself, but you know what I mean) and smash it into bits - the bits prime your immune system.

Same. I watch people get sick around me and I go about my life - not sick. It was different in college. Now, hardly ever.

Daniel, I think attenuated is the term. That's for the live, but weakened vaccines. The dead ones we always called "dead", but I'm sure there's a term for it I can't think of at 3AM.

StellaLuna, my reaction every year includes a fever and general "yuck" feeling for about 48 hours. They say you don't get sick, but my body doesn't like foreign objects... I even break out in a rash when I get stuck with needles. The muscle soreness is pretty typical because of how/where they have to give the injection, but I agree that it sounds like a major stress reaction. One of my coworkers that gets it had a similar reaction the first year. Our whole team at work goes in together because Helga the Health Nurse is rather intimidating and stabs the needle into our upper shoulders. I usually bruise, as well. I'm so sorry you feel awful. But after seeing 17 cases of the flu in the last few months, I'm glad people I know are getting the shot. Embrace the nanobots. :)

While you are likely right, I would suggest he mention the reaction to his doctor.

I'm far from an expert (but does that ever stop anyone these days?), but I believe that the speed of reaction to an allergy depends in part on the degree of sensitivity. My mother died within 2 hours of a shot of penicillin due to anaphylactic shock and total systemic collapse. Prior to that, she had taken penicillin with impunity, and exactly what was the sensitizing event is unknown. Granted such reactions are rare, but they can happen, and with substances that have previously been (apparently) innocuous.

The attenuated is the live vaccine which has essentially had its potency reduced. I believe the term you are looking for is inactivated.

You may want to consider an allergy to latex. The stoppers for the medication contain latex, as do a number of band-aids. Another consideration would be that you may be allergic to the adhesives used for band-aids. Lastly, some people have a stress reaction that causes hives.

Yes, you are right in that allergies do have different rates and speeds of reaction. She still had the needle in her arm however and it takes less than one second to inject the flu vaccine. It is pretty unlikely that it was an allergy. I have seen vasovagal reactions on average probably 2-3 times a day over my last 14 years as a nurse, this is very classic.

I think Katyanna has it right. Do needles or the sight of your own blood make you uneasy?

The last flu shot I had (1989) left me so sick and dehydrated from diahrea and vomiting that I ended up in the base hospital for two days getting pumped full of IV solution. I'll never get another one.

From the CDC website:

What should I do if I have had a serious reaction to seasonal influenza vaccine?
Call a doctor, or get to a doctor right away.
Tell your doctor what happened, the date and time it happened, and when you got the flu shot.
Ask your doctor, nurse, or health department to file a Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) form, or call VAERS at 1-800-822-7967.

You have a strong immune system and the flu shot is not a live vaccine so you cannot get the flu from it, even mildly.

I bow to your greater experience. As I said earlier, you are likely correct, and my opinion is worth exactly what you pay for it ;)

Yes, I have a sensitivity to latex, and our Hospice employee nurse uses non-latex everything, including the equipment and syringes. She double wipes the sterile needles before injecting some of us with both the flu shot and the TB test. Alcohol burns like a m'fer, but I know that's not my cause. My tattoos caused rashes, when I give blood, it causes a rash. I've been told that my body reacts to metals. Even stainless steel needles. And I don't use bandaids on any puncture site... ever. Non-latex bandaids on wounds, but if I cover a needle stick, I'm in deep shit an hour later.

And every flu shot injection I've had lasted 5 - 10 seconds, never less than 5. The med backs up and creates a painful lump. I hope people aren't injecting it in less than a second, I'd smack the shite out of someone! :lol:

Sorry for the threadjack, StellaLuna.
And I certainly hope that you're feeling better!

Daniel, MSD. thanks for the information.

Update!

I've got the flu aches, which I understand can be normal. I'm also sick as hell, which I am attributing to a bad cycle AND to a stomach bug that was going around here lately. I realized the other day after reading about the vasovagal responses that I have NO idea how I respond to shots, because the only shots I've gotten in recent memory were given when I was already vomiting and dizzy. No telling there.

5-10 seconds, though, for a flu shot? Mine took 2. In, slam, out. Then dizzy, puke, home. Lovely.