We spoke to the UoB students who have had the COVID-19 vaccine

With few students being bracketed as a priority for the vaccine, there is little first hand knowledge of what we should expect from taking the vaccine.

For those of you wanting to get the vaccine, there is a standby reservation list you can sign yourself up to. This means you are part of a list of people to be contacted if there are any surplus vaccines at the end of the day. You can fill out the form here.

We caught up with some of the UoB students who have had their Covid-19 vaccine to discuss their experiences and any effects it had on them.

Ellie

Type: Pfizer

Where: Walsall Manor Hospital

Why: Medical student therefore will be exposed to face to face contact

Ellie told The Birmingham Tab that “the vaccination experience was great- really really quick and painless.” She described how her “arm hurt for a few days afterwards and had some bad headaches and stomach pains but nothing too unmanageable.”

Max

Type: Astra-Zeneca

Where: Edgbaston Cricket Stadium

Why: Underlying health condition

Max outlined to The Birmingham Tab that “it was good to finally get the vaccine which I’ve been waiting for.”

“I had pretty minimal side effects” he said, explaining that he “felt drowsy and achey the next day. [But] it was great to get it and make my friends jealous!”

Millie

Type: Pfizer

Where: Millenium Point

Why: Volunteer vaccinator for St John’s ambulance

“The whole experience was really organised,” Millie explained to The Birmingham Tab.

She detailed how, initially, she “got bad side effects. I had a fever but felt really cold and was shaking a lot. I also had some nausea and a bad headache.”

However, Millie stressed that “the symptoms lasted only about 2 days.”

Emma

Type: Pfizer

Where: Millenium Point

Why: Volunteer vaccinator for St John’s ambulance

Emma told The Birmingham Tab that she too, had a positive experience. “It was really efficient to get it, very organised and the staff were friendly,” she said.

“The actual jab was quick, didn’t hurt much at all and I felt fine all day.”

Experiencing some side effects, she described to The Birmingham Tab how when she went to bed she “was really shaky, freezing and achy.” However she said: “I was completely fine again when I woke up but was a weird night!”

Yoav

Type: Moderna

Where: Vaccine Centre in London

Why: Vulnerable family member

Yoav explained to The Birmingham Tab that he heard “you could sign up for a vaccine on the NHS Covid website” and that he “got lucky enough to book one in.”

“I really wanted one […] because my entire family live abroad,” he said, adding “I wanted to make sure that if a vaccine passport happens, I’ll still be able to see them.”

He described how “everyone was really friendly” at the vaccine centre and getting the jab was “fairly straightforward” with “no issues.”

In terms of side effects, Yoav detailed to The Birmingham Tab that his “shoulder was a bit stiff” but “really not that bad and after two days I felt nothing.”

Sophie

Type: Astra-Zeneca

Where: A local leisure centre

Why: Received a letter saying she was high risk

Sophie deemed her vaccination “such a weird experience, very well coordinated with everyone in PPE directing and checking people in.”

“The actual vaccine was painless and had to sit in a waiting room for 10 minutes to make sure you don’t react abnormally,” she told The Birmingham Tab.

“The side effects hit me like I genuinely didn’t expect them to.”

“A few hours after the jab I had a bit of a headache; then during the night I felt really cold and shivery, big headache and my muscles felt almost numb and weak,” Sophie explained.

Ffion

Type: Pfizer

Where: Local hospital at home

Why: Work as a receptionist in a healthcare setting (opticians)

“I was nervous but also excited to get the vaccine so quickly!” Ffion told to The Tab Birmingham.

She explained that “other than a sore arm, I didn’t really get any side effects so that was ideal! I used it as an excuse to just relax for the rest of the day anyway!”

Katherine

Type: Pfizer

Where: Etihad Stadium, Manchester

Why: Health care worker

“The experience was great, the place was very professional and organised,” Katherine told to The Birmingham Tab.

She described how she “had a terrible headache, spent the night really cold and shaky and was in bed the next day. [However] “after 24 hours I was back to normal.”

Lauren

Type: Astra-Zeneca

Where: Edgbaston Cricket Stadium

Why: Received a message saying she was eligible

Lauren told The Birmingham Tab that, for her, “getting the jab was really quick; you check in, go straight to get the jab and they ask you a few questions.

Lauren had a sore arm and “felt really tired and weak for at least a day afterwards”, she told The Birmingham Tab.

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