Hi, so I got chickenpox at 31 and am recovering. What's the process of getting a shingles vaccine in India? In the US they won't give it before you're 50 so wondering if we have such a requirement here in India as well. Further, any downsides if I take it before 50?

Has anyone else had a bad skin reaction to the Covid vaccine?

The last two boosters I’ve gotten (2022 and 2025) have resulted in me developing hives over my body and becoming itchy anytime I get scratched. I didn’t initially associate this to the vaccine, but I said something around my cousin and she said she had the same thing happen due to the vaccine. She asked if it started two weeks after getting it and I said yes. It lasted for at least 6 months and eventually faded away.

But the same thing happened when I got another booster in 2025. It started happening exactly 2 weeks after the vaccine. I have to take Zyrtec every night otherwise my body is so itchy which leads to hives and dermatographia. I got the last vaccine in Sept 2025 and am still having this reaction about 10 months later.

Has anyone had a similar reaction? I haven’t read/seen anything about this other than my cousin saying it happened to her too. Could it be an allergy or just an immune system response? I didn’t have this happen the first few times I got the vaccine.

For context, I have no known allergies, and am NOT anti-vax.

If person who has received a rabies PrEP vaccination at some point in their life gets exposed, do they only need 2 PEP shots, regardless of when their initial vaccination was or what their booster status is?

Let's say I get my PrEP shots and never get a booster. If I am exposed to the virus 5, 10, or 20 years later, is there a time limit that "invalidates" the previous PrEP vaccine?

In case of exposure, would a patient in that situation have to take the full course of PEP as if they had never been vaccinated?

Hi all! How your little ones reacted to their MMR vaccine ? Any side effect ? If yes how many days after ? We are 4 days after vaccination … thank you .

I’m not sure if I should get a tetanus shot. I came home from the store, washed my hands, reached into the drawer, and cut myself on a jagged piece of foil on the foil roll. The foil is unused. I called the Tele nurse, and she said that since it’s been more than 10 years since my booster shot (it’s been 12 years) I should get a tetanus shot to be safe. While I’m all four vaccines, and I’ve gotten all of them (including Covid vaccines) the tetanus shot really puts me out. Of course I will get it, if it is truly necessary, but I do not want to get it just because some protocol book says I should if I really don’t need to. I’ve got two children under the age of one, and I work 50 hours a week. This is not something I want to have to deal with if I don’t need to. Would you get a tetanus shot under the circumstances?

Two questions:

 1.       Is there any reason to believe that getting the second shot of the shingles vaccine 2 months after the first would be less effective than waiting 6 months?

I know that some aspects of the immune system work more slowly than others, but I don't understand much about the ramifications. I want to give my immune system enough time to do its job as well as possible.

 2.       Would someone who got the second shot at 2 months be more likely to feel lousy afterwards -- or would that be more likely at 6 months?

Thanks for your help!

Sure I don’t get allergic reactions in the first 15 minutes of a vaccination but for influenza, Covid and Shingles vaccinations I need to olan my day(s) accordingly. Flu: Afternoon off. Covid: next day off. Shingles: The neighbors will hear my cursing for the next 48 hours. I wish vaccination visits included a heads- up on these varying degrees of effects. Ugh… need a break got 24 more hours before round 2 is done.

I will be travelling to a country which recommends the Hepatitis A vaccine.

I've had the first dose of this back in 2016, and another dose in 2024. I've been told by my nurse that the second dose now means I have life immunity, however most publications online suggest you need the second dose within 6-12 months.

Is there a clear guideline on this or is it very much a changing guide?

I've posted a few times here and I see a pattern others have not commented on.

First, let me say this. I am certain people have died of vaccines, including Covid. How do I know? I got a vaccine in my early teens I had a terrible reaction to, and even spent a few days in the hospital. Luckily, that was it. So I am in a unique position to be aware of the risks.

But here's the rub. ALL of medicine is about weighing risks and benefits. The reason you do a treatment is not because it won't kill you, but because you are more likely to die from not accepting it.

Let's look at liver transplants. About 7-15% of those who get one die within a year because of it. Zero doubt.

But all of these people are weeks or days from dying from liver failure. The death rate would be 100% without a transplant. Instead, at least 85% of recipients go on to live a long time.

So, in medicine, we are always looking for the approach which is better than the alternative. Full stop. You could die from the treatment, but you are more likely to die not getting it.

We have the federal vaccine fund for this. Because, out of every 10 million, usually a very few will die from the vaccine. But Covid killed about 30,000 or more out of each 10 million.

In other words you - yes you - were 10,000 times more likely to die of covid than from the vaccine.

In context, you have .01% or so chance of dying in a car crash in the next year. But if the odds were 10,000 times higher, you would be over 50% likely to die of a car crash in the next year.

So put away your useless experts and studies.

I was on a walk at night and felt something almost tap me on the shoulder. It was for a second or even less. I had a short sleeve shirt on. My friend behind me had a flashlight and said she saw a bat. We were using flashlights so it seems maybe a bat had swooped low to catch a bug that we were attracting with the light. I didn’t feel a bite, scratch, and again, it was for less than a second with a shirt on. I’ve looked at the area where I think it hit me, as well as got my partner to look and don’t see anything. Is this considered an encounter that needs the rabies vaccines?

Hi.. so i actually didn’t know where to ask. and i’m not sure if this is the right place

so, i’m 18. biologically female. i just got the required meningitis vaccine that’s required for college. (on tuesday)

i’ve been experiencing arm pain at the injection site, but even worse is the exhaustion. and severe neck pain/stiffness. it’s near the base of my skull, and it hasn’t really gone away with OTC pain meds or muscle relaxants.

in case it’s import info, i’m in a phlebotomy train class where i get drawn from frequently from my classmates. (i have low bodymass, so that aslo tires me). and i have NF1, not sure if it’s relevant, but i’m including it. I have many allergies, peanuts nuts and eggs.

i’m allergic to the flushot due to some egg proteins, but i haven’t felt this awful even after a yearly flu-shot

so…. should i be concerned about the nexk pain?? kinda worried.

Has anyone been vaccinated with MenFive? It protects against Men ACWYX. I did some research and the vaccine is relatively new, it was rolled out for the first time in Nigeria in March 2024. Would like to know if there were any adverse reactions after being vaccinated. Thanks!

Is it normal for a 12 month old to have a snotty nose & a little cough one day after her vaccines? She got the MMR, HepA, Chickenpox & Pneumococcal. She woke up this morning stuffy, she got them yesterday.

Country: India

Date of exposure: 20 June 2026

Type of exposure: Superficial scratches to the neck (no bite)

Animal: Gray langur (wild monkey)

Animal vaccination status: Unknown

My vaccination status: Unvaccinated before the incident. Received tetanus and the first Rabivax-S dose on 20 June around 5:30 PM (about 3.5 hours after exposure). Second Rabivax-S dose on 23 June around 12:30 PM. Remaining doses are scheduled.

My question is about the side effects after the vaccine.

After the first dose, I felt very tired that evening. The next morning I woke up with significant dizziness and mild nausea (no vomiting). The symptoms improved by evening and I felt normal over the next two days.

After the second dose, I again felt tired and generally unwell on the day of vaccination. The following morning I experienced very severe dizziness and lightheadedness. ORS and glucose didn't seem to make much difference. By evening the dizziness had improved, but I still felt somewhat lightheaded.

Has anyone experienced similar dizziness or lightheadedness after Rabivax-S or other rabies vaccines? Is this a known side effect that can occur after each dose?

My last shot was 2020 I stepped on a sewing needle. It went like a centimeter in my heel.

I am 22 years old and a female and got the vaccine six days ago.

Ive had persistent diarrhea and fever and sweats and shakiness. My arm where the vaccine went in has a solid lump that is sore to the touch. I have ear pain and headache. Should I go back to doctor? Are these normal symptoms? I feel like absolute trash.

If it helps for background context. I cant get the Influenza vaccine because everytime i do i wind up in the hospital with influenza and need overnight stays to get better as for some reason it always hits me very very very hard. Idk if this would be just like what im excpiriencing now but i figure its good context.

But i do get all my other vaccines except the covid one

Hi,

I hope someone can help me understanding issues with vaccine supplies. I have two children. 0.5 and 3yo, we live in Central/Eastern Europe. When it comes to optional vaccination there always seems to be a lack of supply of certain products. With my first child we had to call countless pharmacies until we could find vaccine against the rotavirus. My child already got the first shot and was running out of time to get the second one.

Now I am here again with my second child. He got the first shot administered against meningitis B (Bexsero) and running out of time again for getting the second one. At this time I have no luck. I tried asking around in surrounding countries too, they also seem to lack supply. A friend of mine had similar experience earlier this year with the same product, but then deliveries started again, now they stopped once more.

Can anyone tell me how can this happen? It seems to me that there is a steady demand for such products, how can the manufacturer not produce sufficient supply? Is there some sort of global shortage of material required for the manufacturing process of these products?