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Day 6 of feeling like shit

Posted on November 22, 2023 by Minna Hong • 0 Comments

I am on Day Six of bad reax to the vax, to the max! Yeah, I just made that up. What of it?

The welt itself has gone down. It’s still there, but ti’s much better. It’s no longer burning, but it’s still tender (the shot site).

Yesterday, I was feeling achy and sore. I chalked it up to not doing my full Taiji routine, but I think it’s more a reaction to the shot itself. I can say that because I did the whole Taiji routine today (minus the weapons), and I still ache. My back hurts a bit, and that’s not something I deal with any longer. Plus my shoulders are tense. I realize I’m holding them rigidly, in part to stave off the chills.

I’m cranky because I’m zipping back and forth between sweating and chills. I put on my sweatshirt and I sweat. I take it off and I get the chills. I am not a happy camper. God, I feel lik shit. I thought I would feel better by now, but I don’t.

I am almost positive that this is worse than the other times I got the vax, but I might be wrong. My memory is shot. I have had a booster or two since getting out of the hospital, but I honestly don’t remember how bad it was. I mean, I know I had an intense reaction, but I don’t remember it lasting nearly a week.

Yesterday was a bit better. Today is a bit worse. I am exhausted. I ache. And I still have the chills and the sweats, alternately.

I did my wholeTaiji routine today except for the weapons. I did do the Fan Form, but I took it very slow. On the Bagua side, I did the stretches and the once went through the three movements I know from the Swimming Dragon Form. I really don’t want to overdo it and set myself back.

My teacher emphasized to take it easy and not push myself. She said that the weapons will be there when I’m better, and I know she’s right. Two days after I got home from the hospital, I wanted to see if i could still do my weapon forms.

Remember, I had contracted walking (non-Covid-related) pneumonia, which led to two cardiac arrests and an ischemic stroke. I was pumped full of drugs, and I was as frail as a newborn kitten. On that second day home from the hopsital, I picked up my steel sword and did the first three movements of the Sword Form. I was instantly fatigued, but I was also thrilled beyond belief that I remembered it.

Speaking my truth (no matter how weird)

Posted on September 17, 2022 by Minna Hong • 0 Comments

Talking about vaxxes, it often comes up that they are ‘not that bad’. Back when they were first rolled out, there was a concerted effort on the left to exhort people into getting them. I have no problem with that. People should get vaxxed if they can. But, I didn’t like how they were saying it was no big deal and scoffing the notion that it might be anything other than a minor nuisance for people.

I have had three vaccination shots including one booster. The first one was on my birthday is 2021. It was horrible and I suffered greatly from it. I was expecting it to be terrible because I react badly to flu shots as well. In fact, I stopped getting the flu shot because of how horrible I reacted to it. My doctor snapped at me that it was better than being dead, which, true, but it still sucked.

When I got my first vaccination shot, my arm swelled up, was burning hot, and throbbed for weeks. I was exhausted, fatigued, and sore as well. Everything slowly dissipated on the daily, but my arm did not fully recover in time for the next shot. Seriously. When I went to get my second vax, I still had a bump from my first. Three weeks and a day later.

So. When I saw all the tweets making fun of people who were hesitant to get the vax, I spoke up. I tweeted my experience, emphasizing that it was worth it.

I got a response from someone who admonished me, saying we should encourage people to get their shots. He claimed that my tweet would deter people because I was very honest about the side effects I had experience f rom it–the first vax to be specific. One of my fave tweeters came to my defense, saying he would rather know the effects ahead of time so he could prepare for it. Others chimed in to agree, but I really had a moment of ‘was I wrong?’ when I received the initial scolding tweet.

Here’s the thing. I prefer to know the possible effects ahead of time. It makes it easier for me to prep myself for dealing with said effects. It’s not as if they would suddenly magically not happen if I hadn’t talked about them. And, yes, it may put off some people from getting the shot, but wouldn’t it be much worse if they went into it thinking it’d be a breeze and it knocked them on their ass? I was careful to emphasize that I was rare in my reactions and that I had a shitty immune system. I said that for most people, it would probably be ok. I just wanted people to be prepared in case they had a reaction like mine.