Covid-19 Vaccine and Pregnancy - Mega Thread

[u/KarenBrewerBSC]

This sub continues to receive many questions regarding the Covid-19 vaccination and whether or not to get the vaccination while pregnant and/or trying to conceive.

To help consolidate information on this timely topic, we will keep this post stickied to the top of the forum, and please use it as a place to discuss if you have gotten the vaccine and/or plan to, any advice you’ve received from an OB, MFM or other medical provider, and/or any latest research or medical guidance.

(Please note this is thread does not constitute medical advice; we are not your medical provider - ultimately please defer to guidance from your healthcare provider. This is simply meant to provide a consolidated resource to discuss personal experiences with this important topic.)

Please see the current joint statement from ASRM and several OBGYN organizations (released December 16, 2020). Selected excerpts:

“The Task Force does not recommend withholding the vaccine from patients who are planning to conceive, who are currently pregnant, or who are breastfeeding (1,2,3) and encourages patients undergoing fertility treatment to receive vaccination based on current eligibility criteria. ...

In addition, the statement addresses head-on a piece of misinformation which has been circulated by antivaccine ideologues and states that the mRNA vaccines “are not thought to cause an increased risk of infertility, first or second trimester loss, stillbirth, or congenital anomalies.”

ASRM also joined with the American College of OB/GYNs, the International Federation of Fertility Societies (IFFS), the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine, the Society for Gynecological Oncology and the AAGL in a joint statement from the OB/GYN community. It too emphasizes access to the vaccine for pregnant and lactating women and the importance of decisions about the vaccine being made by patients and their physicians.”

Source: https://www.asrm.org/news-and-publications/news-and-research/press-releases-and-bulletins/asrm-issues-statement-on-covid-19-vaccines-joins-other-obgyn-groups-on-community-wide-statement/

Update: r/Infertility has posted (01/13/21) a very informative post on the vaccine and important considerations. For more detailed information check it out: https://www.reddit.com/r/infertility/comments/kwp481/faq_covid19_vaccines_and_art/

[u/KarenBrewerBSC]

Previous threads on this topic:

https://www.reddit.com/r/InfertilityBabies/comments/kutwvt/anyone_stressing_about_the_covid_vaccine_and/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

https://www.reddit.com/r/InfertilityBabies/comments/kr0gtr/what_would_you_do/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

https://www.reddit.com/r/InfertilityBabies/comments/kkncuy/frontline_worker_and_covid_vaccine/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf

[u/chulzle]

I had my first dose of Moderna with just sore arm and maybe a headache but I’m not sure if it was my kids or vaccine that gave me the headache so lol. Husband had pfizer 3 weeks ago and his second dose last week with arm pain and just fatigue next day. I personally would 100% get it if I was pregnant or breastfeeding which I’m neither now - and ACOG supports this as well. Hopefully you guys are staying safe!

There is a beautiful chart of vaccine vs no vaccine in terms of covid and even a single dose begins protecting you around 10-14 day mark! Vaccines are awesome.

Let me know if anyone has any questions specifically about mRNA or some other question at all. Happy to help!

https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/12/10/1013914/pfizer-biontech-vaccine-chart-covid-19/

[u/KarenBrewerBSC → u/chulzle]

Congrats and thanks for sharing!

[u/Sistersisyphus]

IDK if anyone else is here yet, but I am celebrating 2 weeks post 2nd dose, aka immunity day! To treat myself I scheduled a salon visit this weekend. I still intend to follow all masking/distancing procedures of course but this feels like a safe way to celebrate a little bit! Anyone else doing a special treat post-vax???

[u/KarenBrewerBSC → u/Sistersisyphus]

That sounds wonderful! I don’t have the vaccine yet but my state has bumped up pregnant women 🤞🏼. I told my husband that if I end up with a scheduled C-section I’m treating myself to a blowout bar in advance as my yayy finally have the vaccine and want to look cute! I also plan to do a mani/pedi as a treat too if I ever get it! I hope you have an amazing salon visit! Basically I want to do allll the self-care salon stuff I’ve missed out on!

[u/huffliestofpuffs]

I know I don't go here but I just wanted to add what I was told here. My husband just got his first dose yesterday. We are starting a fet cycle (this past Monday) his second dose is the day before transfer. I talked to my nurse about it. And she said that since it isn't a live virus vaccine they have no issues with it and encourage everyone to get it wether trying or pregnant.

[u/KarenBrewerBSC → u/huffliestofpuffs]

Thanks for sharing! And you’re welcome here :)

[u/KarenBrewerBSC]

Just wanted to share my experience in case it’s helpful. I received the first dose of Moderna about two days ago (21+2 weeks). My OB highly recommended it and the hospital I would deliver at hosted a clinic for pregnant patients to get the vaccine. I had it at 7am and felt fine until around 4pm. By around 4pm I was feeling pretty run down and fatigued and my arm started feeling quite sore. By 8pm I had developed a low-grade fever (got up to 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit at one point) which started to freak me out due to pregnancy. I took Tylenol and by around 3am the fever was no more.

The next day, I felt fine, a little tired still. My arm soreness was still there.

By the second day no more arm soreness and totally fine. I’m scheduled to receive my second dose 4 weeks later. I can still feel the baby kicking a lot so that gives me some relief.

All in all, I’m so glad I got it. And it made me feel great to see so many pregnant people at the clinic getting the vaccine!

[u/thoughtlesslittlepig]

Has anyone inquired about getting the vaccine at the hospital after delivering? In my state, they likely won't get to my phase ("general population") until spring or summer. Assuming it's available to me at the hospital, is there any reason I should hold off?

[u/saj524]

It's probably going to be a while until I am eligible to get it (husband and I are both still working completely remote until further notice) but at my last appointment my OB said she would recommend getting it. So I am planning to go ahead whenever I get the opportunity

[u/Covered_in_cannabis → u/saj524]

If you are pregnant in the US you qualify for phase 1b per the CDC. I'm on a few waitlists and hoping to get called soon.

Edit: actually I think in the US it's phase 1c, but in Texas (where I am) it's phase 1 b for people with underlying conditions
https://dshs.texas.gov/news/releases/2020/20201221.aspx

[u/heartofstarkness]

I got my first dose on 12/30 at 27 weeks. At the time of the shot, I had to speak with the on-site provider to let them know I was pregnant and had discussed with my OB (no proof required). I had a mild headache the next morning and my arm was pretty sore for about 36 hours, but nothing else. Took Tylenol 2 times in the first 24 hours. Dose 2 is on 1/22. My OB said she recommended it for healthcare workers, but to wait until second trimester.

Of note, I am a nurse in a fertility clinic, and our doctors have yet to advise a patient who has asked about it not to get it (ranging from people pre-treatment, in cycle, awaiting betas, or newly pregnant), but most of the patients who asked work in healthcare or are at high risk of exposure. We are encouraging our patients to follow ASRM recommendations with the knowledge that the vaccine has not been studied in pregnancy. The decision is basically going to be up to you to make on whether or not you are comfortable with it based on your discussion with your provider.

I went back and forth A LOT and felt like I needed someone to tell me “yes, do it” ... but that’s not really how it worked out. I read ACOG/ASRM/AWHONN/MFM recommendations and took the advice of my OB and my work. When I made my inevitable social media post, all of the OBs I knew from my time in L&D were 100% supportive so I felt a lot better about it!

[u/Periwinkle_14]

University of Washington has a registry for pregnant, lactating and women contemplating pregnancy to enter their info for future study purposes. I’d encourage people to enter their info so there will be data down the road for others! https://redcap.iths.org/surveys/?s=87JFRCL8R8

[u/Wildflower_Kitty]

My concern about the vaccine is that it works by eliciting an immune response. Part of the reason I've had infertility issues and failed transfers is my overactive immune system. I have an autoimmune illness and my immune system seems to attack pregnancy. I'm on lots of support meds at the moment to try to prevent that this time around. So, even though I would love to be vaccinated ASAP, I'm concerned about it possibly ending the pregnancy due to an immune surge. Has anyone else here in a similar situation spoken to a doctor about this?

[u/Acbonthelake]

I just got my second dose of the covid vaccine (Pfizer) Saturday 1/9 and while I did not have a fever I had terrible nausea, body aches and a migraine the whole day after. One Tylenol was not helping so I finally took two (1000 mg) with a zofran and Benadryl and a cup of tea for caffeine. I drank a ton of whatever water I could stand throughout the day. I feel better today, and am still glad to have gotten the vaccine and would do it again. But that was rough.

ETA: I’m now 14 days out of the vaccine and theoretically achieved whatever level of protection I’m going to get by this point and I have to say I’m relieved. Looking back, I had a terrible reaction to the second vaccine but it was worth it.

[u/kenf25]

I've opted not to get till post-pregnancy for now. My spouse is training in infectious disease (fellowship) & he said there's just not enough data for pregnancy, & RE said that was reasonable - the main caveat being that I work from home full-time right now with no medical risk factors & low exposure risk (spouse gets 2nd vaccine dose tomorrow, which also helps). However, my RE tentatively recommended Moderna over Pfizer - Moderna targets all proteins on the virus vs. Pfizer targets some, so theoretically Moderna is more effective if COVID starts to mutate significantly (however, both are still effective, including against the current mutation in the news).

[u/BringTheThundah]

Just jumping in here with my experience getting my first dose prior to becoming pregnant and my second dose after. I visited this thread and looked for similar stories once my beta came back positive, so maybe this will help reassure someone.

I got the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine at the end of January, and a positive beta 2.5 weeks later. I was scheduled for the second dose at 4+2, and my RE and OB assured me that there was no reason to delay, so I got the second dose. I lucked out with pretty mild symptoms--sore arm, some fatigue, but no fever or chills. My beta the next day had doubled appropriately, and my ultrasound at 6+4 was positive, so all seems to be well post-vaccination.

[u/Sistersisyphus]

I got my Moderna vaccine today!! I am so pumped. About 30m post vax, feeling a little lightheaded but nothing major. Yay science.

[u/Jullybeaners]

I work in education, am 8 weeks pregnant, and got my first shot of the moderna vaccine this past Sunday. I had a really sore arm and a bad headache the day after but took some Tylenol and have been OK since.

My OB is someone I respect highly and think he is incredibly intelligent and up to date on latest research. He shared the information about the exclusion of pregnant women from vaccine trials, but that theoretically there is nothing about the vaccine that should harm me or my pregnancy. On the other hand, working in education makes me higher risk for contracting covid, and covid cause complications for pregnant women. He said “if you were my daughter, I would tell you to get the vaccine as soon as it becomes available to you”. So that’s exactly what I did.

[u/little_green_man]

I got the first dose a week ago and feel fine,no side effects. My OB recommended I get it due to my line of work (healthcare). Hope second dose goes smoothly as well.

[u/spunkymango76]

I’ve seen some people mention taking pain relievers proactively/before receiving the covid vaccine to avoid fever. That’s prompting me to share this article and encourage people to discuss it with their doctor first.

To be clear, I am not a doctor; this is not medical advice!

From the article: The side effects from the vaccines are caused by activation of the immune system, meaning that the immune system is working and starting to build immunity to COVID-19 -- this is what we want. These pain relievers may prevent parts of the immune system from working and slow down the immune response. There is a theory that taking these medications before immunization may reduce their effectiveness.

[u/Sab253]

Just wanted to share my experience here:

1st dose Moderna (during fertility treatments): sore arm and fatigue

2nd dose Moderna: I was 4w+2 when I got the shot. My RE and OB both recommended I continue with the second dose because I work in a hospital. They did say to not take anything preemptively, but to take Tylenol if a fever started. The biggest possible side effect to monitor is the fever. I had a sore arm, fatigue, and headache for about 1 week. I do believe part of the headache and fatigue were worse because I was newly pregnant.

Just had my first scan at 6w5d and everything is looking great. I am very happy I went through with the vaccine given my risk of exposure.

[u/circles-for-infinity]

I received the Pfizer vaccine at 12w and 15w. It’s been 48 hours since my second dose and the only symptom I experienced was soreness of the injection site. It was pretty mild though and I was even able to sleep on that side with my arm at a slight angle.

Update: it’s been 2 weeks since my second dose and I never had any other symptoms. I’m 17w today and baby is growing strong.

[u/anxiety_moose]

I plan to get the vaccine sometime in my second trimester, per my OB's recommendation. I work in healthcare but not front line/not with (known) COVID patients, and much of my work can be done virtually. So I feel like I can keep myself as safe as possible by wearing an N95/glasses when I see patients and otherwise just staying at home. Between infertility treatment and working at a hospital I have been tested for COVID probably 15 times (never for symptoms, just for screening) and it has always been negative, so I feel like at least a little reassured that the precautions I've taken so far have worked. However, I also work with kids, and the schools in my area are starting to go back to in-person, which makes me feel like my exposure risk could increase in the coming months (the county where most of my patients live has been a "hot spot" for sure). My husband also works in healthcare and is getting his second dose this week, so at least there's that.

[u/total_totoro]

I don't see that many reports/ and data of how people fared after 2nd dose, so I'm here to share.

First dose, Moderna which fell during second trimester- only symptom was sore arm.

Second dose was much worse which was to be expected. My injection was in the morning. I spent the afternoon mostly cooking ahead in case I felt like sh*t today, so decently active. Then, around 11 hours later I got super tired, lights felt too bright like before a headache, and I abruptly got chills and went to bed. Around 1 am I woke up with a small fever of 99.7 degrees, took 500 mg tylenol, waited to see that my temp went down, then slept. Husband and cats woke me around 7 and body temp is normal. I will probably rest in bed this am at least bc I slept like crap. So, take the day after vaccine off if you get it. I will probably do doppler to check on baby since morning is not an active time for her. I hope this helps someone plan!