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Receiving the COVID-19 Vaccine

Added to Arts & Entertainment for testing purposes. An interview exploring what it was like to get the COVID vaccine...

(Photo by Rachel Rajarathinam)

Aya Pagunsan (AP)

(junior, nursing)

Xochitl Graham (XG)

(senior, nursing)

Rachel Rajarathinam (RR)

(junior, nursing)

Interviewed by TJ Hunter

When did you get the Vaccine?

AP: I got the vaccine on January 21st. My appointment was at 11:40 but I got it closer to 12 because there was a little bit of a line to get it.

XG: I got the vaccine on the 12th of January when I was back home in Georgia.

RR: I got the vaccine on January 21 at 2 PM. 

Where did you get it?

AP: It was a fire station in Grand Rapids

XG: The health department in Woodstock, Georgia

RR: We got it at fire station that was converted into a drive thru clinic for the vaccine

Why did you get the vaccine? Did you get a choice?

AP: I did have a choice, but it also made sense to do for nursing school since we were actually going into the hospitals so much. However, it wasn’t mandatory for nursing students to get it. I don’t know anyone that didn’t get it.

XG: I got the vaccine because I was working at my Dad’s office and they were offering it, and I didn’t really know when it would be available to me again so it was a smart choice to make. Personally, I believe that there are going to be unknowns with it, but we need to trust the science. And if you’ve done your research, you can read that nothing’s really different with this vaccine, meaning that they took the same route that they took to make all the other vaccines. And there’s a whole process that goes behind the FDA approving a vaccine. They’re not just going to approve anything. I also got it not just for myself, but also for the protection of others as well, because the goal is kind of that enough people get the vaccine in order to create group immunity.

RR: We did have a choice. The nursing department gave us an option and showed us a list of people that could get the vaccine, though they said it wasn’t required. If someone didn’t get the vaccine, they would still be able to go to classes and clinicals, they would just have to be really careful. I did it because I genuinely trust the science behind it, and I did my research on both types because I didn’t know which type I was getting until I got there. I feel like having access to the vaccine right now is a great opportunity, so I was definitely going to take it.

Which variation of the vaccine did you get?

AP: Moderna

XG: Moderna

RR: Moderna

Were you nervous before getting the vaccine?

AP: Kind of, not going to lie. I’m not scared of needles or anything, I think it’s just because not a lot of people have taken the vaccine, so it’s still pretty new. But it was really chill, it wasn’t anything bad.

XG: I was way before. I’d say months before, when I heard the vaccine was coming out, I didn’t want to get it because you don’t want to be one of those people that gets something from it, but as time passed I became less nervous.

RR: I was actually super excited and then right before I left it really hit me that I was getting the vaccine.

How did you feel physically after getting the vaccine?

AP: I was feeling fine, but closer to the end of the night, I started to get a headache and I experienced a few flu-like symptoms. Meaning that I started to get a little bit stuffy and I felt like how you feel the night before you’re about to get sick, but I took some Tylenol and then the next day I was perfectly fine. 

XG: Physically I was good. I felt like I slept harder that night. 24 hours after that, though, when I was going to sleep I got a headache, and then I got dizzy when I was going to sleep but I woke up and I was fine.

RR: It was definitely less painful than a tetanus shot. I just had a little bit of soreness but no major symptoms.

How did you feel emotionally after getting the vaccine?

AP: I felt fine, except nursing school is stressing me out.

XG: I was excited

RR: I was really excited to be a part of something like this. I think it’s cool.

Walk me through the experience. How easy of a process was it?

AP: It was an easy process- it was just a drive thru at a fire station, like I said, and after filling out some paperwork, you just drove up, the worker asked you to open the door, and then they administered the vaccine while you’re still in your car

XG: It was in an office setting, I signed up as a group with some of my coworkers, we made an appointment, went there, filled out some paperwork, waited for them to call our name, they gave us the shot, and then we waited for like 15 minutes after they gave us the shot, made the appointment for the next dosage there, and then we left.

RR: Like I said, it was at a fire station. When I got there I had to stop and wait and fill out paperwork, just verifying that it’s me. Then I just drove up, they opened my door, sterilized my arm, and gave me the shot. Then we drove forward and they monitored us for 15 minutes to make sure that there was no serious reaction or anything like that.

Any advice for students who are apprehensive about getting the vaccine?

AP: Just get it to protect yourself. Nothing wrong has really happened, and it’s really not a scary process. Everyone is really nice. So it’s a super chill process, just breathe through it.

XG: Do your research and don’t feed into all the conspiracies that other people are saying. It’s the same exact process that we went through with all the other vaccines and we’ve actually had the technology to do it this fast for so long, and again, it means a lot for the FDA to approve this vaccine.

RR: If you’re apprehensive, figure out the reason why you’re apprehensive, then do your research about that. Educate yourself and figure out what’s best for you.