Just had my first Covid vaccine! Feeling a little tired, but good! A little thread on what to expect, for any who might be anxious

I had mine at a local centre through my GP. You’ll need to bring your shielding letter (if applicable) and in some cases, some ID. You’ll be asked to confirm your name, dob and have your temperature taken on the door.

Once you’re through, you’ll be given a form, a ticket number and directed to either sit in distanced seating or go through to a booth. I went straight through. Inside each booth, there’s a clinical member of staff and an admin person checking vaccines.

They’ll ask you about Covid symptoms, allergies, recent vaccines and whether you take blood thinners. Depending on your answers they’ll administer the vaccine or seek further advice. You can ask which vaccine it is, you’ll also receive a card with vaccine date and type.

It’s very important to keep this card! I nearly lost it in the first 2 minutes. The vaccine takes 5 seconds at most. I felt something immediately, my chest tightened slightly and my heart rate slightly elevated. It has all settled now, an hour later. I feel tired now.

My arm is also slightly achey. All of this is normal for a vaccine so I’m not worried. I’ll monitor for symptoms and rest up, but I’m very happy to have had this! From my understanding, it takes about a week for protection to begin to kick in and 3-4 weeks for full protection.

FYI I’ve had the Oxford vaccine, which is slightly better for me personally. Whenever you’re offered a vaccine, go! Get one! Science and medicine are magnificent, I’m so grateful to everyone who worked so hard to make this happen.

Also, an addendum, in case anyone misunderstands, the vaccine does not offer full protection against Covid, but it does offer you some protection against more severe disease. As I’m on high dose immunosuppression, I’ll take everything I can get.