Since this pandemic began, I have been debating whether or not to address COVID-19 directly on this blog. It is such a polarizing subject for some and an argument I frankly have no interest in entertaining. However, I’ve learned a lot that I believe is worth sharing with you, especially now that we have vaccines available to help end this deadly pandemic. At the time of this article, three COVID-19 vaccines have been approved for emergency use by the FDA but actually getting one has proven difficult for many. I will present the facts as we have them so that you can make informed decisions regarding the vaccine and how to increase your likelihood of success of getting one if you choose to get one.

If you already know more than you want to about COVID and the available vaccines, you just want to know how to make an appointment, scroll down for la-piece-de-resistance!

First, the basics of COVID-19

COVID-19, formally known as SARS-CoV-2, is a respiratory virus that bind to ACE2 receptors all throughout your body. The spikes you see on the virus attach to these receptors allowing COVID to download its genetic material into your cells in order to make your cells a COVID virus factory. As a result, you make more viruses and spread them out throughout your body.

Symptoms of COVID, per the CDC, are as follows:

• Fever
• Cough
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Nausea
• Diarrhea

If you find yourself experiencing any of these symptoms or had a close exposure (you were within 6 feet of them), then you should go get tested. Getting tested should be free. Look to your state’s COVID-19 website for more information. New Jersey’s is https://covid19.nj.gov/.

If you test positive, having a primary care doctor to help keep tabs on your progress, or lack thereof is a great help. They can guide you on when to discontinue isolation or if you should go to the hospital. Also, please get yourself a pulse oximeter. It will measure your oxygen levels in real-time. Unless you have a history of lung issues, it should measure 95% or better. Less than that, call your doctor or go to your emergency room. If you do have a history of lung issues, consult with your pulmonologist.

Treatment and Recovery

Some people will require treatment in order to dial down the drama on COVID in their bodies. So they will be prescribed medication usually during a hospitalization. Some of these medications are already approved by the FDA while others are under emergency use. Regardless of how the FDA classifies it, they are used to shorten the lifespan of the disease process giving you an increased chance of survival.

Regardless of whether or not you had to be hospitalized, you may experience symptoms long after you’ve stopped being infectious. If you’re one of those people, you’ve likely heard the term “long-haulers” or “long COVID”. This means you are still experiencing symptoms related to COVID after you’ve recovered. If you are experiencing this, talk to your doctor or see if your local hospital has a clinic dedicated to this. They are popping up everywhere. The bigger the hospital, the greater the likelihood of them having such a clinic.

Check out the CDC’s page on symptoms of long COVID.

The best thing you can do is to avoid catching COVID altogether as best as you can. Over 511,000 people have died at the time this was written and the ones who survive can experience side effects of the disease for an undetermined amount of time. Some people will never know they had COVID and others will experience it and recover fully. However, I don’t advise you take a gamble to see which category you’d fit under.

Anecdote: A patient of mine came to the hospital in the fall of 2020 with blood clots in his legs and lungs. They ran tests to see why he was clotting in order to determine the course of his treatment. One physician assistant thought to test for COVID-19 antibodies. Lo and behold, he was positive. He recalls he and his wife being sick in the spring before testing became available. Over six months later, this is how he learned he had COVID. He is now on blood thinners which of course puts him at risk for other complications and he will have to follow closely with his doctors. He wasn’t even 55 years old. Lesson: getting COVID isn’t worth it.

COVID-19 prevention

You know this by now. Wear a mask, social distance, and wash your hands. I keep hand sanitizer in every bag and in my car. Preferably, you want your hand sanitizer to have 70% alcohol. That information will be on the back of the bottle.

Before touching your face, make sure your hands didn’t touch anything that could be an infection source. For example, if you’re touching items at the grocery store, don’t scratch your eye. If you must, clean your hands first, then scratch.

If it is available to you, consider getting the vaccine. While it is understandable to be anxious or uncertain about getting the vaccine, I ask of you, what is the alternative? How else do disease get eradicated?

COVID-19 Vaccines

In the United States, we currently have three COVID-19 vaccines approved by the FDA under emergency use. They are manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson.

The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines were created using mRNA technology. It’s the first time this sort of technology has been made available to the general public. It was being studied for other uses for many years but they were able to modify it for the purposes of ending this pandemic. The mRNA (messenger RNA) is surrounded by lipids (fat molecules) and stabilized with salts and sugars mainly. The mRNA eventually dies. This message tells your cells to produce COVID spikes which your body recognizes as foreign. As a result, your immune system creates antibodies that prevent the harmless spikes from binding to your cells. So when you encounter COVID in the wild, or in the community like normal people would say, your body already has antibodies ready to block the virus from binding to your cells and downloading its genetic material into your cells. I have detailed videos in my story highlights labeled COVID-19.

The Johnson & Johnson (aka Janssen Biotech) vaccine works more like the traditional vaccine you may be used to. It uses a modified virus (in this case adenovirus modified so it can’t replicate or make copies of itself) to carry the genetic material needed to create the COVID spike.

All these COVID-19 vaccines technically work the same. They introduce your body to the COVID spike so that you develop antibodies. These antibodies block the virus’s ability to bind to your cells. As a result, you don’t become a COVID virus factory. The mRNA vaccines require two separate injections three to four weeks apart, while Johnson & Johnson only requires one.

You CANNOT catch COVID from these vaccines. If you do test positive for COVID, you caught it in the streets. Do as mentioned above and call your doctor.

For more details on these vaccines, their ingredients, side effects, and their associated clinical trials, check out the CDC’s vaccine page as well as the manufacturer pages and/or EUAs (emergency use authorizations) for Pfizer-BioNTech (trial data, EUA), Moderna (trial data, EUA), and Johnson & Johnson (trial data, EUA).

NOW…for la-piece-de-resistance

How do you get an appointment that seems so elusive? There is not enough vaccine in circulation yet for the population so getting appointments for people truly feels like a version of The Hunger Games. Yes, it is frustrating but as more vaccines get into circulation, the easier it will get. No need to curse your politicians or health officials. Be patient and don’t worry about who’s getting the COVID-19 vaccine that you feel shouldn’t. You don’t know their circumstances, even if you think you know. Every person who is vaccinated gets us closer to herd immunity, thereby decreasing your chance of catching COVID. Every person who gets vaccinated gets us one step closer to seeing our family/friends, going to school, going to work, eating out, and traveling.

Here are the resources I used to book over 35 appointments for family, friends, and whoever they know who wants it. And I work full-time! Others have used these same resources to book hundreds of appointments for those unable to do it themselves. This is done mainly through the use and power of social media.

Twitter

Seek and follow people or bots that routinely search and alert you for COVID-19 vaccine appointments in your state and/or county. I live in NJ so I am linking the ones I used to get appointments for those in my area. If you’re not in NJ, look for similar Twitter accounts for your state.

They are accurate the majority of the time but don’t get mad if you check and there are no appointments. They are not perfect but they are doing this as a FREE service to others. They also tend to add tips. For example, sometimes vaccine locations only vaccinate people who live or work in their county. At other times, locations release a limited amount of appointments which they tell you ahead of time so you don’t get your hopes up too high. Some of them even update you when it’s full so you know to hang it up.

Vaccine Bot NJ – “Follow me for available COVID19 vaccine appointments in New Jersey.”

VaxxUpdates – “Helping Eligible New Jersey Residents Secure A COVID-19 Vaccine Appointment”

BCNJ COVID Vaccine Bot – “I’m a bot that tracks the Bergen County COVID-19 Vaccine site & tweets when appointments are available.”

UCNJ COVID Vaccine Bot – “I’m a bot that tracks the Union County COVID-19 Vaccine site & tweets when appointments are available.”

NYCVax – Instant vaccine slot notifications – “Instant notifications when slots open at: • 52+ State/City facilities • 188 Duane Reade’s • 45 Rite Aid’s Get notified the moment a new slot opens up.”

Facebook Groups

I learned all about these Twitter resources through the amazing work of New Jersey Covid Vaccine Info. If you don’t have a Twitter, more often than not, a member of this group will screenshot the info from Twitter and share it in the group so you’ll always be in the know. They also share tips and tricks on how to book, vaccination site expectations, and how to cancel if you need it. If you are not savvy with technology, you can ask volunteers in this group to book your appointment.

New York has a similar group called Covid Vaccine Help – New York.

Pennsylvania’s is PA COVID-19 VACCINATION INFO.

Once again, if you don’t reside in any of these states mentioned, look for a Facebook group sharing vaccine information for your state.

Optimize Your Browser

Once you have added these tools to your arsenal, arm your browser as well. Check your autofill settings and add the info ahead of time so you don’t have to type every detail as you’re rushing to make an appointment. Chrome settings allow me to enter the name, address, phone number, and email address of a seemingly limitless number of people.

If you don’t plan on getting the COVID-19 vaccine but know people who do but are limited in their use and availability of technology, please consider helping them. It is so hard for them and beyond frustrating. If you volunteer to do so, you will need to gather their name, date of birth, phone number, email address, home address, and county they work in, if applicable. People are so appreciative of this assistance. When asked for insurance info, just check off that they have no insurance. Not only does it help you get through the screens faster, but it also is a measure of security for the person you’re helping out that you don’t have all that information. Do NOT ask for or provide your social security number, maiden name, etc. Stick to the list given above. All the vaccination sites I’ve encountered allow you to bypass those questions. The person being vaccinated can update whatever info they would like when they get to their appointment. When it asks health-related questions, choose “don’t know” unless you do know obviously.

I also created a folder in my browser’s bookmarks for COVID-19 vaccines. As I came across different websites where I could make appointments, I would add them to my bookmarks so I could quickly get to those sites if appointments dropped.

Those are my tips & tricks on how to book a multitude of appointments for those who want it. Together, we can bring an end to this pandemic.

Have you used any of these tips to snag COVID-19 vaccine appointments for the people you love? Are you using any that haven’t been mentioned here? Share in the comments below. Please also feel free to ask questions. Use my contact page or DM me on Instagram. I’m happy to help.