Here are the symptoms expected after receiving a COVID vaccine

Reports have shown that receiving a COVID-19 vaccine is not pleasant, but it’s far preferable to catching COVID-19.

“The benefits certainly outweigh that short-term discomfort,” Wisconsin Immunization Program Director Stephanie Schauer said during a press call with reporters last week. “We know that a fair number of folks may experience some fatigue, or headache, or muscle aches, or pain or redness at the site of injection.”

Nausea, chills and dizziness have also been reported, and were more common with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine than the vaccine from Moderna.

“These symptoms are an expected part of immunization. It shows that the body is responding,” Schauer said.

Symptoms tend to be worse after receiving the second dose and for those who have already had COVID-19; health leaders still recommend that those who have had COVID get vaccinated, in part because of the many different strains of the novel coronavirus that have arisen.

New data also shows that the side effects and chance of serious illness after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine indicate that the vaccines are far less dangerous than actually catching COVID-19 and are likely safer than even catching the flu.

Still, deaths have been reported after receiving the vaccine. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that 113 people died after receiving the vaccine between Dec. 14 and Jan. 13, with 6,994 “adverse events” in total being reported. Over that monthlong period, 13.7 million doses were administered.

Two-thirds of those 113 deaths occurred in long-term care. There were also 46 cases of anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction; concerns about anaphylaxis are why recipients of a vaccine, particularly for people who have pre-existing allergies, are encouraged to remain at vaccination sites for a while after receiving the vaccine to make sure they are OK to go about their day.

If all 113 of those deaths are considered to be linked to COVID-19, then the death rate (dividing 113 by 13.7 million) would be 0.000825%. In comparison, COVID-19’s U.S. death rate is 1.78%, since there have been 494,008 American deaths linked to COVID-19, with 27,811,343 of confirmed cases, according to the CDC’s totals reported Saturday.

Plenty of concerns remain, although health experts are still recommending that virtually everyone age 16 and older get vaccinated.

Pregnancy

The CDC also notes that pregnant women have a higher risk of suffering from many severe illness; that “based on how mRNA vaccines (such as the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines) work, experts believe they are unlikely to pose a specific risk for people who are pregnant;” and, according to the Mayo Clinic, miscarriage already occurs in 10% to 20% of pregnancies.

What to do

Here’s what the CDC recommends if you suffer the following symptoms:

To reduce pain and discomfort where you got the shot

To reduce discomfort from fever

When to call the doctor

What if I have an allergic reaction?