WWYD re: booster shot?

amother

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 9:50 am

Please answer ONLY if you actually got vaccinated because you wanted to (not because of a mandate) and are not opposed to the vaccine. I'm not asking if I should get vaccinated or not, since I already made that choice.

After I got my second dose of the vaccine in February, my period was initially delayed by 5 weeks. For the next 2.5 months, I got my period every 2 weeks. Finally, I switched birth control pills, and things calmed down. The problem is that the pill I switched to is my last bc option, and it's already not covered by insurance. (For the full story, here's my thread https://www.imamother.com/foru.....5480.)

At the time, I was not convinced that it was from the vaccine, but after hearing some similar stories, I think that the timing was too coincidental to just ignore it.

Now, with booster shots available starting in a couple of weeks and the delta variant running rampant, I'm not sure what to do. On one hand, I want all the protection I can get. On the other hand, what am I going to do if I start getting my period every 2 weeks again? After all I've been through with bc, it's just not bearable.

I took an antibody test yesterday. We'll see if I still have antibodies from my vaccination six months ago. But if I don't, what then?

Even worse, I hope to ttc sometime in the next 4-7 months. What if I got the booster and then my cycles went nuts, making it impossible to conceive on top of the endless niddah?

amother

Butterscotch

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 10:39 am

amother [ Strawberry ] wrote:

I would get the booster now before you TTC so you’re not even longer from a dose and trying to make this decision during early pregnancy.

This, I think.

But I honestly don't know. I think I would try taking vitamin D, and get the vaccine. If there were issues, then I'd quit the birth control.

FTR I got my booster yesterday. I also took my mini-pill almost an hour late yesterday. I was on the mini-pill and nursing with both previous shots and IYH there won't be any issues "from the booster" (but if ch"v there are I will blame myself for taking the pill late).

I had spotting issues on the miinipill until I started taking it with water and B6, but you have to be careful not to take too much B6.

amother

Amaryllis

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 11:07 am

I am a person that you specifically don't want to answer your post, I did nor run straight to get it, but I will.

The protection you got from the vaccine is now 6 months later, according to Israeli data you are at risk again.

So if you do not want covid, and you believe the vaccine is the way to go, you should go for it.

It very well could be that your cycle problems are from that. However, equally people got weird cycles after contracting the virus too, more often the other way, missing and late.

I do not think you should decide until you get the labs back. But many people are getting delta while still showing anti bodies, so I don't know about that.

You really need to consider your overall health and the desire to get pregnant cuts both ways. Messing up the cycle versus the extra danger of getting covid in the third trimester.

The booster can set you up for aggravated mikvah cycles, if your suspicion proves out.

Not sure there is a all win answer for you.

Hatzlacha with your decision, it should be for the best.

amother

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 4:20 pm

Amarante wrote:

I am counting the days until I get my third booster shot.

If I were actively trying to conceive, I would get it as soon as possible because the statistics of Covid complications especially during pregnancy are eniygh for me to take precautions by getting the booster.

I hear what you're saying. I'm just seriously traumatized. Crying

And when it comes to bleeding and niddah, the worst always does seem to happen to me.

amother

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 4:24 pm

amother [ Amaryllis ] wrote:

Thanks for your measured response. I appreciate it. Even though you told me that I'm between a rock and a hard place, you summarized the situation well without preaching to me about it.

Look, I got the vaccine because I didn't want to have to quarantine if exposed anymore, and because they were saying that the vaccine was 95% effective when I got it. Also, I figured there would come a time when they were mandating vaccines, and I just wanted to get it out of the way. I never imagined that I'd have issues with my cycle from it.

Now, it seems that every day I hear about another 20 people who got covid despite having been vaccinated. Yes, I'm not hearing about serious cases (for the most part), and I'm not minimizing that at all; that was the purpose of the vaccine. But if I still have to quarantine, and I still could transmit it, and I still need to stay away from my higher-risk family members, then part of me feels like what's the point in taking on the risk of my cycle for that kind of tenuous reward, especially considering my age?

amother

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 4:27 pm

amother [ Daylily ] wrote:

If I finally got my cycle under control, and I wanted to get pregnant soon, I would be concerned.

I would check for antibodies and call my ob and see what they said.

My OB totally discounted the idea that the vaccine caused my issues. Never mind that I know other people who had such a problem. Never mind that immune cells are found in the endometrium. Also, of course what's consider a "temporary problem" in the secular world, 3 months of cycle disturbances, can be an eternity when you keep TH. (Even in the non-TH-keeping world, having your periods 14 days apart for 2.5 months is not normal and highly distressing, but if you lump all cycle disturbances together, then yeah, overall 3 months of disturbances is a nuisance, but hardly a medical concern outside of the frum world.)

amother

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 4:29 pm

amother [ Butterscotch ] wrote:

I'm not ready to ttc yet - lots of changes going on and it would be a really bad time right now. Things should settle down, but for now they're not. So if my bc goes haywire, I'm in big trouble. Also, what if I'd go off bc and things wouldn't settle down?

I'm not talking about spotting issues. I'm talking about full-blown periods every 2 weeks after having been on it with no issues for a year and a half. That's awfully suspicious, in my opinion.

amother

Daylily

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 4:34 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I'm sorry your OB treated you that way. If you really believe your cycles were messed up from the vaccine, which is obviously a big possibility, let's just hope the labs show you still have antibodies. If you do, then why do you need the booster so soon?

amother

Mon, Aug 30 2021, 4:50 pm

amother [ Daylily ] wrote:

Regarding my OB, I made it sound harsh. I really like her and she's been supportive through my whole bc ordeal. She just didn't think it was from the vaccine, which is what most doctors think. My PCP understood why I'd be hesitant, because even if it's not proven, the timing means it's a definite possibility that the vaccine caused my issues.

I'm operating under the assumption that my antibodies will have disappeared. But even if they didn't, the booster is not given only based on antibody level, and I'd want the extra protection for my parents. Both of my parents had covid, had the monoclonal antibody treatment, and got the Johnson and Johnson vaccine 3 months later, so they're still protected, but I'm somewhat worried about them. My grandparents even more so- if I'm going to go anywhere near them, I would want max protection. But at what cost?