I could write a 500-word post about how I feel now that I’ve gotten past the discomfort (I minimize) of the second shot. Suffice it to say; I feel physically better than I have for the past year. In February of 2020, I became ill. It was mild at first, but something told me to sleep. I did, for over 30 hours, getting up to go to the bathroom once.

Since that day, I have been mildly achy, tired, and stiff – every day. Sitting at a desk caused a mild backache that became excruciating if I felt even a little under the weather beyond the already discouraging discomfort. I experienced three days of exhaustion after exercising. An eight hour day of employment was exhausting. I ended up dropping the fall semester of college because I didn’t have the energy to do school work after eight hours on the job. I lost a job because of being so tired and making the poor choice of confronting my boss about their condescending and moralizing manner.

Hindsight being 20/20, I’m amazed I managed to keep my current job. I am surprised I was able to perform at my current job. And I was once again struggling to keep up with my school work.

On the emotional and mental front, I struggled with mild depression. I lost motivation. I would become angry over the actions of others, something I had overcome through meditation and exercise. However, because of my physical condition, activity became a chore. And meditation became elusive. I became moody, swinging between irritation, sadness, and hopelessness.

Now? I can tell something has changed. Not only physically but mentally as well. My stiffness and achiness have left. Instead, I feel the normal physical condition of an overweight man approaching 60. I can accept that. And I can do something about my weight. I know it will take a while until I am back to the weight before February of 2020. But with how I feel these past two days? Yeah, I can get it done.

I have already emailed my instructors, as well as resumed working on assignments. The damage to my grades is not reversible, over which I have no worries. Instead, I will pick myself up, dust myself off, and get back to business. I am contemplating taking a few days off from work and concentrate on getting caught up on my school work. I am behind on the lab portion of my introduction to biology class. I struggled with using the app required with the course. However, taking time off may not be necessary.

To recover from the impact of that last year, all I need is to apply effort. I will let the outcome figure itself out.

Okay, so I ended up coming close to 500 words. What can I say? My muse overcame me.

Three weeks ago today, I received my first vaccine shot. It kicked my ass. I had a sore back – exceedingly sore – for three or four days. And I’ve been exhausted ever since – more than usual for me, anyway.

I’m going to go for my second shot today, later this afternoon, at about 3:00 PM. I suspect I’ll be experiencing more significant discomfort. All the reports I’ve heard second hand suggest that I’ll be extremely miserable within 12 hours and then slowly taper down over the next 24 to 72 hours.

I’ve already struggled with keeping up on my school work. I’m afraid this will make me even farther behind. At some point, I will have to bite the bullet and inform my instructors of my struggles. For now, though, I’ll maintain the axiom of pulling myself up by my own damn boot strings, thank-you-very-much!