COVID-19: J&J Update, April 14th

An Update on the J&J pause, for those who recently got it.

If like me, you got the J&J vaccine recently (within the last 2-3 weeks) you are probably anxious for information on this pause. So I want to share what I know. I have used the information provided in the US along with information derived from the AZ vaccine which had the same issue.

Here is what to watch for: any of the following symptoms in the weeks after your injection:

• shortness of breath

• chest pain

• leg swelling

• persistent abdominal (belly) pain

• neurological symptoms, such as severe and persistent headaches or blurred vision

• tiny blood spots under the skin beyond the site of the injection

With the AZ vaccine, the blood clots "occurred in veins in the brain (cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, CVST) and the abdomen (splanchnic vein thrombosis) and in arteries, together with low levels of blood platelets and sometimes bleeding." This explains why you want to pay attention to abdominal pain or leg issues as well.

Timeline: 6-13 days post-vaccination seems to be the most likely timeframe. Remember that everyone's body goes through the process at its own pace.

Who is at risk? The highest risk group is women under 50, but in Europe, with the AZ vaccine, they saw issues in women up to age 60 and some cases in males. I would encourage anyone who got the vaccine in the last few weeks to pay attention.

What is the issue? I am really curious about what exactly is happening physiologically because clots and bleeding/low platelets are a weird combo. Based on what was seen with the AZ vaccine, here is what I could find: "it is thought that the vaccine may trigger an immune response leading to an atypical heparin-induced-thrombocytopenia-like disorder. At this time, it is not possible to identify specific risk factors." From https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/news/astrazenecas-covid-19-vaccine-ema-finds-possible-link-very-rare-cases-unusual-blood-clots-low-blood

I do want to remind you, as everyone is, that it is rare. It is a one in a million chance. But still, I understand that when it is you, it's different - but keep reminding yourself of that. As so many are also reminding us, every day you have a 1 in 500k chance of being struck by lightning. So you are more likely to get struck by lightning than for this to happen to you. Keep reminding yourself of that too.

I also want to again encourage you to sign up for vsafe.cdc.gov it is a system by which the CDC will send you text messages to check on how you are doing and if you report anything alarming they will call you. They check on you daily. I encourage anyone who gets vaccinated to use it so the CDC can get real-time data on side effects and you can have a little peace of mind. The more information they get, the better information they can provide.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Yesterday was a hard day for thousands of people around the country. Women, in particular, were hit hard with this news and many were reeling, nervous, and seeking answers that were in relatively short supply. Every ache, every twinge made them wonder. Some tried to put on a strong face, some shrugged it off, and some were overwhelmed by the uncertainty - if only for a moment. They questioned their decisions, second-guessed their choices, and many experienced panic, regret, or dread. But what has been done is done. We cannot go back and change the past and regret has no business here. Looking back for too long will only cause you to stumble in going forward, so we must accept the past and turn our attention to the here and now. Take the hand of someone who is struggling today, no matter the cause, and walk with them. Let's shoulder each other's burdens. And let's not forget we are in this together.