vaccine gripe

[Tumbulu]

I have had a sore back for a few months. A ewe fell into a crack in the dry ground and I had to pull her out, and other farm things seem to have caused muscle pulls. My wonderful chiropractor for once had me come back for a second session, which was unusual, but my back still felt bad. So, I went to my minimalist doctor and asked for blood work to make sure nothing was going wrong with an internal organ.

I did have indications of kidney problems and she did send me for a blood test and a culture. But while there she talked me into getting a tetanus booster. It had only been 7 years since my last, but they are trying hard in Calif to get everyone who is around kids- I have a 10 yr old daughter- to get this new tetanus with the some new pertussis vaccine for adults in it. So, I said yes, although I felt in pain and it was against my idea of a good idea to get an immunization when not feeling right. But I am a get along do the right thing person, and I am not in there all the time and I am a bit of a fanatic about tetanus being on a farm. And I had no fever....

So, tetanus is a painful vaccine, and then the blood tech was a bit hard on my arm. Now two days later the arm is all bruised, it really hurts both at the tetanus shot location and where the blood was drawn. And my back as well.

And so my gripe is about why did I got pushed to get this vaccine right when I was in pain already? Do medical people really not know that the tetanus vaccine does cause pain? And that if someone is already in enough pain that they go to the doctor, that it should not be added to without good cause? My tetanus was not out of date, I really should have said no.

End of gripe session. I am grateful to have a doctor that I like and to have the money right now to pay for the blood tests and find out what is the source of the back pain.

[elleng]

1. Sorry. No answers, but

I recall my last tetanus, YES, painful, felt like they were injecting 1 quart of something into my thigh. Had an accident, called 'de-gloving' of my foot. Accident on our porch, 22? years ago. 'Funny,' damage to foot LOOKED awful, but apparently so damaged nerves that only pain I EVER had was that tetanus shot!!!

[truedelphi]

2. There are many animal studies out there that show that when an animal

Is vaccinated when not in good health, problems, including cancer, can result.

Veterinarians are careful not to push vaccines on their clientele when brought in with inflammation or illness.

People doctors are out of the loop. A parent brings their kid in to the pediatrician's on account of being sick, and the "Well baby" nurse is right there to insist that for the "sake of convenience" that the kid get vaccinated while there.

Also from what you are saying, you did not get merely the tetanus vaccine, you got pertussis as well.

I would go back and make a stink. The symptoms you are describing are not good. Make sure that you have the doctor's office document everything, and bring a copy of the documents home with you. If the vaccination spot looks inflamed, photograph it as well.

My reaction to the swine flu shot in 1976 started out like yours - and within a week I lost a lot of mobility in my left arm.

Many years later I found out that the name for this loss of mobility was Guillaume Barre, and I was lucky. Since I was in my twenties at the time, it cleared up after fifteen months or so.

[laconicsax]

3. You realize that you can refuse treatment, right?

You say the nurse talked you into it and while I don't doubt it, you had every right to say no. The reason it was pushed on you is that the majority of adults aren't current on their pertussis booster, which contributes to the spread of the disease. It's in the interest of the public health for the TDaP to be pushed.

BTW: the TDaP isn't uniformly painful. When I got my booster, The injection site was a bit tender for a few hours and then I was fine.

[LeftishBrit]

4. As with anything, one has to balance the immediate pain and side effects of the treatment with the

potential risk of not having it. Painful injection when already in pain, vs tetanus risk for someone who work on a farm and was injured when farming.

If you had a tetanus booster only 7 years ago, it's not a simple decision. Personally, I would probably have chosen to wait till I was feeling better, as long as the injury did not involve a cut or puncture. But the choice could go either way.

In any case, I hope they can sort your back problems soon! Back pain is not fun.

[TexasProgresive]

5. If you pulled an ewe out of a crack then you work around soil.

Tetanus lives in soil and your immunity is weak given your last tetanus shot was 7 years ago-5 years is the norm for revaccinating for tetanus. Remember that the death rate from lockjaw (tetanus) is 50% with treatment. And it is a very bad way to go. Just compound the ache from the shot by orders of magnitude.

Sorry about your back-I hope you get some rain to close up those cracks- for us too. Our pastures are just dust. Even the rag weed has given up. -now there's a silver lining!:woohoo:

[elocs]

6. Got a tetanus shot last winter and it was painless, but the next day my upper arm hurt

like hell. I wasn't anticipating that.

[snagglepuss]

7. Years ago when I had a severe reaction to a cholera vaccine, a doctor

told me that the reaction showed that I had been suspectible to the disease since the symptoms I had were the same as the disease though I should add that the doctor who was in the UK said the dose I was given was twice as high as what would have been given in the UK or Europe. I wonder if your reaction to the vaccines shows that you were at risk?

[trotsky]

8. Easy to compare any amount of pain vs. a genuine case of lockjaw.

The former is ALWAYS going to be better than the latter.

[LeftishBrit]

10. I had understood that the OP was referring to the effects of an injury a few months earlier...

in which case she was unlikely any more to get lockjaw from that injury, though on general principles if you work on a farm regular tetanus boosters are a good idea.

But if she had *just* been injured, then I agree that the vaccine would be be the better option to taking any chance of lockjaw!

[SheilaT]

9. Hmm, my last tetanus booster, about a year ago

was totally not painful, although I was warned that the injection site might hurt for a couple of days.

Maybe I really DO have the high pain threshold that so many people assure my I have. Except for getting my teeth cleaned, which I cannot do without full local anesthesia and I really wish they'd put me out for that, or even minor burns. But almost nothing else seems to hurt me very much.

[mzmolly]

11. I know that exercising an arm after a tetanus shot helps prevent

it from becoming stiff and sore. I had a vax years ago that caused terrible pain and temporary, partial paralysis. I was told that moving my arm after the next booster would be helpful and it was. Your back pain may be related to overcompensation given the arm is sore and bruised?

Good luck!

[Tumbulu]

12. Thanks everyone for the sympathy and good advice

I did as much as I could with the left arm without making my back worse and it feels almost all better today. I had indeed been babying it.

The doctor called to say all was normal with my blood work, so the back pain may be primarily muscular after all.

My RN friend said her TDap last year swelled up and was painful for nearly a week. So, I guess I got off easy.

By the way, they say once every 10 years for tetanus, it is no longer once every 7 years.

Thanks again,

Tumbulu