If it’s been six months since you got vaccinated, it’s time to get boosted. Below is some helpful information for Columbia, Mo., residents who received the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. If you received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, please scroll to the bottom.
Once you’re boosted against the coronavirus, you are less likely to contract it. However, if you do, you’ll likely have the illness for a shorter amount of time and with minimal symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is because of the extra antibodies from the booster. The booster shots from Pfizer and Moderna contain mRNA, which will increase your coronavirus antibodies by tenfold, according to WebMD.
The most commonly reported side effects of the Pfizer and Moderna booster shots are pain at the injection site, tiredness, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, nausea and vomiting, swollen lymph nodes in the same arm of the injection and fever. Side effects typically start within two days of vaccination and resolve themselves two or three days later. Taking ibuprofen or acetaminophen (Tylenol) can reduce symptoms and doctors recommend you take the pill(s) after your booster.
Getting a booster shot over winter break is a great idea if you’re worried about the pandemic. Boone County has seen a dramatic increase in cases within the last few weeks, and Mizzou students will return from break to a town with nearly a thousand active cases of COVID-19. Unfortunately, the entire state has nearly one million active cases. To track the number of cases in your county, click here.
This Twitter thread by Boone County Public Health Services covers when to get tested, how to test yourself at home and provides a list of options for where to get tested.
Finally, if you received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, you have a different set of recommendations from the CDC. Anyone who received the Johnson & Johnson shot can get the Johnson & Johnson booster. Or, you could take advantage of the CDC’s “mix-and-match” policy. This allows you to choose one of the mRNA vaccines (Pfizer or Moderna) for your booster. Early data from the CDC shows an mRNA booster shot may provide a much-needed advantage against the highly contagious omicron variant.