The vaccine is really it's such
a precious resource
that we don't want to do anything
that might blunt or dampen
your immune response to the vaccine.
And so there's really a sort
of a theoretical concern
that taking pain relievers
or something that might
reduce your fever.
So like acetaminophen or ibuprofen,
that those could somehow
blunt your immune response to vaccines.
There are a lot of people
who need these medications,
who take them daily or frequently.
And I would say those practices do
not need to change.
But for people who have never had
the vaccine before,
let's say there's really no reason.
And we don't recommend that people
take your pain reliever
or a fever reducer
before vaccination afterwards.
If they do have significant pain,
you know,
you could certainly try
doing a warm compress or a cold compress
or doing some exercises with your arm .
I think those are great things to do
or put some other
topical medication on it.
That's a, you know, a great way to go
if the pain really starts to become,
you know, too intense.
It's OK to manage it
with one of those medications.
But we just try to say,
hold off if you don't have to.
In general, we prefer that
people don't take it
before either of their shots.
But we understand that
if somebody is on it long
on one of these medications, long term,
or if they had a particular reaction
the first time around
and really feel like they won't be able
to get the second shot
without the assistance
of one of these medications, then,
you know, we think about it
in terms of what's the benefit
and what's the risk
if you start to develop
a symptoms of an immune
response afterwards.
Some people may feel some body aches
or pain at the site or even, you know,
may have a mild fever in some cases.
You know, then I think it's you know,
it's reasonable to take one
of these medications
and you don't have to
worry about, you know,
inhibiting your immune response.
That's actually a sign that you're having
a really strong immune response and,
you know, a sign that these vaccines
are really a homerun.