With the end possibly in sight for the  COVID-19 pandemic, many people are choosing to vaccinate themselves against this sickness.  While each state has its own set of rules on who could get vaccinated and when, it seems now that anyone 16 and over can acquire a vaccine.

There are three different versions of the shots that are available in the U.S.: Pfizer, Moderna, and the Johnson & Johnson vaccines (although the J&J vaccine has currently been suspended).

I received the Moderna shot, which consisted of two separate shots a month apart.  Two weeks after the second dose is considered to be full protection from the Coronavirus.  While my experience wasn’t too bad, the side effects have been varied from person to person.  For my first shot in February the only side effects I experienced were fatigue and soreness in the arm. All I really wanted to do was sleep when I could, and my arm felt like I did a nice arm workout. Overall, it was bearable and not at all as bad as I feared it would be.

The second dose a month later hit a bit harder in some ways. My arm wasn’t as sore the second time – it felt just like I got any other shot.  A few hours after my shot I started feeling exhaustion even more extreme than it was with my first shot. I could barely keep my eyes open for at least 48 hours, and I would get bouts of chills and a low-grade fever. Again, this wasn’t what I was expecting my second dose to be.  It was exhaustion for about a week and only a couple of days of any sort of fever.

There have been varied responses to the Moderna vaccine. Some people who reacted terribly to the first dose, but the second dose was a cakewalk for them. It was interesting to see how my body as well as other people’s were affected by this new vaccine. The greatest part of the vaccine is so available to everyone now is that there could be a chance of herd immunity. Maybe then life can go back to the way it was without facemasks, but I know that people will be forever changed. So many people are more conscious of what they are touching daily, and even more, people are learning that the masks really did help keep this sickness in check.

Maybe this is the beginning of normalcy again, I know for me it is finally turning into that. I only hope that other people think of what it could do for the people around them and get the vaccine if they are able. I know this isn’t a typical story, but it is important to show that other students on campus are also getting their vaccines. If my experience can help anyone else, then that is all that really matters.