I’m embarrassed to say, i’ve not yet received the covid vaccine. I’m terrified to get it because in my pea brain I think my autoimmune system will go into overdrive for the long haul - that setting off the alarm to fight off a new thing will not switch off. I’m not even sure where I get this from - but i’m moving forward and already asking my Endo for the shot at my next appointment coming up soon. I woke up Saturday with what felt like strep throat and sinus infection at the same time…wow, Monday the PCP did the rapid covid test that was negative…i’m still on the mend, but i was shocked my BG only attempted to go out of control about 3 times - i’ve heard getting sick can make it go wildly out of control, but catching it before 200 wasn’t so out of the ordinary. I’m not certain that test was accurate, but i’m here now alive to ask for support in going forward. If covid is worse than what i’m recovering from now - i’ll do what ever ya tell me, i’m also getting pressure from my family. Thanks in advance for whatever you can say to open more windows for me. hope everyone is well. M
People have different ideas about news sources and what to believe. It’s not my place to tell you what to do, except to encourage you to do your own research. I had a mild case of COVID that lasted two weeks and ALL I wanted to do was sleep. I didn’t even have an appetite and had to force myself for nutrition purposes (thankfully CIQ kept me at perfect levels the entire time!). I had concerns about getting the vaccine even for a while afterwards but finally did, and got my second Pfizer dose Sunday. The statistics I’m hearing - that 90+% of people being hospitalized have not had the vax - made me glad I got mine - in the event I do get the new variant it should be less severe.
Oh, both doses have me body aches the next day - the first were more severe but OTC painkillers helped. I don’t think the first one affected my numbers but yesterday and today I’ve been running a little high, possibly due to that but manageable. Body aches for the second started Monday but ended earlier today.
I do plan to continue to wear a mask for additional protection. Just sharing my story of it helps you.
thanks Dorie…i’ve also heard and read what you’ve already said.
@Disco2 no one can tell you what to do Mary, but I can say that IMO, getting COVID would be risky for my health. So I see that there are vaccines available, now with millions upon millions of people who received the vaccine along with the safety assessment as required by the FDA. Given that I think getting COVID is a risk, I must weight the risk of getting the disease versus the risk of the vaccine. In my simple head, given the documented safety, I decided that it would be overall less risky to be vaccinated and so I got the vaccination.
I had zero diabetes reaction to the vaccine. there was absolutely no change to my blood sugar as a result of the vaccination. my arm hurt after the first and I was tired after the second but there was no blood sugar issue whatsoever.
Now I’ve been really, really sick during the 42 years I’ve had diabetes and I have observed that blood sugar is harder to control while sick, so I have to be extra careful, but I’m still here.
the final choice is yours. good luck to you and whatever you decide.
thanks Joe moving forward. my older brother said the same thing you did about weighing risk. thanks.
Mary @Disco2 , I got my first Moderna beginning of March and my second dose on April 3r,d . I did not experience any adverse health issues and the only affects I felt with diabetes was that I needed a little less insulin.
Since then, I’ve been healthy and feeling better than I’ve felt in years.
It sounds like you’ve decided to get the vaccine, but maybe you’d like some reassurance, is that right? Printed words on a screen are a tough medium, so if I’ve misunderstood, please forgive me. If that’s right, though, then I can tell you that my daughter got her shots as soon as she was eligible, and had literally no side effects at all to either dose, except that her arm was a little sore. No BG issues, no aches, no fatigue, zilch. (Everyone else in my family is vaccinated, too, and none of us had anything worse than feeling tired for a few hours, but my daughter’s the only one with T1D.)
It’s good you have an appointment. I did check with my Endo on the vaccine who said absolutely. I prayed for a vaccine from day 1 and wanted it. I got it as soon as I could, because I had a feeling that I would not survive covid. We have 10 family friends who died from covid! Most of them occurred before the vaccination became available. My state of mind improved tremendously after I got vaxed. I still wear my mask inside when there are others who are not vaccinated. There are breakthrough cases, so I stay cautious….still……I believe I can survive covid, since I have the vaccine.
I had no issue with my first dose of Moderna. The second made me very tired and achy for a couple of days, but I got over it. I never had a fever and my BG was normal for me. I would do it again in a heartbeat and will get boosters, if recommended.
thanks for sharing that…and it is reassuring as I move forward to get it. so sorry for the family members who died from covid…its horrible and confusing that some just get it mildly and others die. m
yes you read my ramble correctly…thanks for sharing. i think the down the road unknowns about whats going into my body is the biggest challenge for me but as I weigh it against getting sick and that outcome (possible death) then the vax is the best of the two roads.
Hi again. Given your anxiety it sounds like you will want to get the shor/s at your doctor’s office, but they are available at pharmacies in some areas as well. I get my annual flu shot at my pharmacy and it’s actually more spacious than the waiting area at my doctor’s office so I did my COVID there too. But by all means do what puts you at ease.
Also, in my state there is a cash drawing for a million dollars if you get vaccinated. They draw every other week. I got mine before they announced it, though. I’m not sure how many states have this. It’s supposed to be an incentive. For minors, they draw for $100,000. Scholarships.
Mary, please, please get the shots.
I had to fight and force myself to nearer the front to get mine as soon as I was eligible. My son lost his Karate instructor, who was non vaccinated, after being in hospital for 3 months. He died after a week in a coma! It was very difficult for my son to come to terms with.
We now have a way to stop this virus and being a T1D, you are gambling everyday you don’t get this, especially in the current climate.
It’s safe and it’s effective, please, do it!
Thanks for your concern and sharing. i definitely am getting it. first, i need to take the antibody blood test for i’m recovering now from a nasty virus that at the PCP office on Monday the rapid test came back negative but thats a 25% chance wrong. The blood test will say if i’m now having the covid antibody, if thats the case the guideline is NOT to get vaccinated till after 90 days - its shown that if you’ve already have covid antibody the vaccine will make you very sick. If it comes back negative then thats two tests negative then i’ll feel at peace getting vaccinated asap. if the test is negative good! then the other question is, can I get the shot while i’m still recovering from this current virus - I await that answer from my Endo…so i share your concern and so sorry for the people that you know who have died from this…its awful. thanks for caring. m
I anxiously sought out the vaccine and my wife and I got our shots early. Moderna for both of us. I’m the T1D, my blood sugar spiked a bit the day after the second dose, and a slightly sore shoulder. That was it. My wife, zero side effects.
After receiving the vaccine we’ve had two friends and one relative die miserable deaths from COVID-19. We feel safe now.
Thanks for sharing Jim. I have access to Pfizer which my Endo recommended that or moderna. I’m moving ahead.
Sounds good. I took two of the Pfizer and haven’t had any lingering ill effects. Sugars seemed to go up slightly with the first, and I had localized swelling with the second, but that was it.
(Just another data point for you! 
). I got the Pfizer shots in March, at a public facility set up by our county. No reactions to either of them, either getting sick or having glucose control problems. FYI: Type 1 for (add the 3, carry the one, take the square root…) 60 years, on a pump for about 20.
–Keith
Hi Mary,
As others have said noone can tell you what to do. If you just need someone to tell you to do it so you’ll feel more confident or other reasons thats fine. But it is still your decision.
I got the Vaccine in March at Walmart of all places. They asked me to sit down for a half hour before leaving because they weren’t really that confident about any possible side effects immediately after getting the shot.after five minutes I went to buy somethng then left. I felt absolutely no side effects at all. I got the J&J vaccine right after it was approved. it was the first one that only required one shot. My sister and her husband had Covid right before that aand they got the vaccine a couple days before I did. It was actually my sister who made the appointment for me. Otherwise I may not have taken the time to do it. But now that you need proof of getting vaccinated to travel or enter some stores without a mask I am glad I did.
Bottom line, In my experience I see no potential harm in getting the vaccine. I do however see risks in not getting the vaccine especially being diabetics. So I, would agree with those telling you it would be better to be vaccinated.
All the reporting on Covid has been unreliable at best. politics does that to all information regardless of how important it is. Politicians have no shame. I do not believe the numbers are at all accurate because the medical industry needed funds and the best way to meet fund raising goals was to report everything they could as Covid. Even vehicle accident deaths have been reported as Covid related. But the virus is very real so weigh the possibilities of not getting it and getting sick to getting the vaccine and any possible side effects you my or may not feel. The worst the former cause is everything up to and including death. the ladder is discomfort for a period before going on to live your life as before…Just a thought
Good luck with everything, Stay Strong!
“Auto-immune” means you create antibodies to things normally found in your own body. It does not mean you have a larger reaction to vaccinations. That being said, if you do react to the vaccination, or to any vaccination, it means you are creating the exact immune reactions desired so that you do not get the actual disease. I did not react to the Shingrix vaccine. But I did get a fever for about 12 hours after my second Covid vaccine. My blood sugars did not change, however. And I am scared about the Delta variant, as it is more contagious and makes people sicker than the original Covid. So I am so glad I was able to be vaccinated before the Delta variant became the predominant variety. All of our offspring except two of our grandchildren have also been vaccinated, and I am really grateful that they are all safer.