Dr Frank McGeorge shares his experience with second dose of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

STRAIT – As COVID-19 vaccinations continue, we are now at a point where many people who received the first doses of the Pfizer vaccine have received their second.

This includes Dr Frank McGeorge of Local 4 News. He recently spoke about the side effects of the second dose so you know what to expect.

Related: Questions about the COVID-19 vaccine? Ask the doctor

“My experience with the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine was roughly what I expected. Mainly just a pain in my arm where I received the injection, although it was more severe than I had ever felt any other time. The pain responded to Motrin and was gone within a day. My second shot was another story, ”McGeorge said.

He shared some thoughts from a video diary recorded after his first shot.

“Something else came to my mind as I drove home to check on the news, some untimely afterthought, three weeks from today, the date on my vaccination record that I am due to receive my second dose of the vaccine I have three midnight changes. It was poor planning on my part because, based on the study data, the highest incidence of side effects like fever, body aches, etc. are a day or two after the second hit, ”McGeorge said.

Fortunately, he was able to postpone his second dose after his night shift.

Data from the study Pfizer submitted to the Food and Drug Administration for its emergency use clearance clearly shows a significant number of side effects after the second dose.

Almost a third of people aged 18 to 55 had fever, 35% chills, 52% headache, 22% joint pain, 37% muscle pain and almost two-thirds fatigue.

McGeorge was part of the unlucky group and felt all the side effects.

He received the photo at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning and went home to sleep.

At noon four hours later, when he woke up, McGeorge had a sore arm. During the day on Sunday, he felt fine until about 9 p.m., 2 p.m. after the shot.

He started to have muscle aches. By 10 p.m. he had taken Motrin. The next 12 hours were really unpleasant.

McGeorge says he experienced muscle aches, joint pain, headaches, chills and a fever of up to 100 degrees.

He didn’t feel normal until 36 hours after the shot.

“I want to be clear. I’m talking about this so you get a feel for what might happen after the second hit and you’re ready. Make sure you have a light day planned after and have Tylenol or Motrin nearby. I’ve spoken to a lot of my colleagues who also received their second dose and at least a third of them had significant side effects, ”McGeorge said.

“I also want to note that I have seen the effects of a severe COVID infection. The vaccine is definitely the best choice. “

the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Michigan rose to 525,612 on Tuesday, including 13,501 deaths, state officials report.

Tuesday’s update includes 1,994 new cases and 100 more deaths.