I suspect a lot of arm soreness issues with shots has more to do with the skill of the shooter...

[Wounded Bear]

than anything else.

Haven't had mine yet, so I'm speculating a bit, but I've had a lot of shots in my life, and more than a few blood draws and the biggest causitive of soreness seemed to be the skill of the operator as much as anything.

[Liberty Belle]

1. I agree. I know some people who didn't have a sore arm at all,

and others who say it was the most painful shot they ever had.

When they start training people not used to administering vaccines to do so, you're bound to have a few issues, though each person has a different pain threshhold, too.

There are probably other factors such as some medical conditions and whether the person holds still or is startled and moves when the needle goes in.

[bigtree]

2. I've watched a lot of shaky hands giving shots

...including the dude who administered the first Covid vaccine.

Techniques range from the dart-like jab, to the press-and-push. (not technical terms, of course )

[jcgoldie]

5. Probably shaky because they are not used to being televised at their job

Id be shaky too.

[Bradshaw3]

3. I suspect your suspicion is suspect

[d_r]

4. frst dose

haven't felt it all

[Binkie The Clown]

6. I agree. I need frequent blood draws and most are relatively painless, but...

once in a while I get a real "butcher" who can't seem to find the vein, or can't seem to get blood, and ends up jabbing, probing, and sometimes resorting to trying the other arm. The really skillful one make it easy. The not so skillful one can make it agony.

[shanti]

29. I have that issue too

so I just tell the phlebotomist to poke me in the vein near my thumb/wrist. Easy peasy. They never miss that one.

[Binkie The Clown]

30. I was tempted to get a tattoo with a circle and an arrow saying "poke here". nt

[occupant]

8. Jabber

My first shot was given by a Pharmacist who was training a nice young lady. The pharmacist was not a jabber,like he was shooting darts. He was a placer. I never felt the needle at all, just the fluid entering my arm. No pain whatsoever...good guy.The next couple of days I felt it, but not anymore ! (Day 6 post shot)

[soothsayer]

9. Friend advises getting it in dominant arm because movement helps

Who knows

[3catwoman3]

13. The more you move the arm, the sooner the soreness abates.

I tell my older school age and teenage patients, “If you walk around having a pity party, it will be sore longer, so flap those wings.”

The thinking is that moving the arm more increases circulation will speeds up absorbing and distributing the vaccine fluid.

Your friend gave you good advice.

[Wounded Bear]

22. In boot camp, they tended to follow shot time with calisthenics...

[we can do it]

10. You relax your arm and it hurts less. Every time.

Not saying there won't be some soreness. But it will always be less if you don't contract your muscle.

[Mr.Bill]

25. I agree totally with that.

Relaxing the muscle makes a big difference, but not everyone is able to do it. It takes practice.

[zipplewrath]

11. A doctor agrees

A doctor friend of mine agrees. He almost stopped the tech doing his because of the specific spot the guy chose.

[TwilightZone]

12. Nope.

It has little to do with methods.

Some people react; some don't. My partner got their shot from a pro and still had significant arm soreness, particularly after the second one.

Partner has also performed thousands of shots - same thing. Some have issues; some don't.

[Fiendish Thingy]

14. That's the fact, Jack. Nt

[Irish_Dem]

15. It's an inflammation response driven by your immune system.

It is a good sign that the vaccine is doing its job.
If you move your arm around it will help move the vaccine away from the arm.

[Denzil_DC]

16. It's possible.

Also, some of the bruising I've seen in photos could be the result of not applying immediate gentle but firm pressure on the injection site.

Obviously, if anyone has any concerns they should seek medical advice.

[SoCalNative]

17. Perhaps

Or maybe, like other shots such as Tetanus or even the flu shot, it can cause some pain in the muscle for a few days.

[Phoenix61]

23. I swear tetanus is the worst. Hurts every time.

I do a lot of yard work and household repairs so I make a point of keeping up to date on it.

[MicaelS]

18. I never felt the needle.

But my arm was sore as hell for 2 days.

[Chainfire]

19. The lady who delivered my shot, did it way to high on the arm.

It is a problem while getting the shot through your car window when you are only 5-8. It was sore for two days, but I am not complaining. I hope to be sore again in ten days.

[Politicub]

20. Sometimes the same type of vaccinations cause muscle pain

and another times they do not.

For example, in most years, I don’t have soreness at the injection site for flu vaccine. In some years, the muscle in my arm will throb for a couple of days after the injection.

The flu shot didn’t bother me at all this year. Last year, otoh, my arm was so sore that I needed to take some ibuprofen for relief.

So, I agree that it has to do with the person giving the shot. And I would also add that the brand of the needle/syringe could also have an effect.

[Ms. Toad]

21. My parents got their shots from the same person

and had reactions that paralleled their flu reactions.

Every year - no matter whogives them their shots - my mother barely reacts; my father gets a sore arm and runs a fever.

Same with the COVID 19 vaccine. My father reacted more strongly than my mother.

The difference is much more tied to the immune response (and for shots - the content of the shot) than to the skill of the person holding the needle.

[roamer65]

24. Correct.

I used to be a good phlebotomist when I worked in hospital as a lab tech. Nurses would see me and say the patients wanted me to do it. The patients were often happy it was me.

[UTUSN]

26. I've had diabetes lab drawn for 15 years & believe proficiency is a definite factor.

Many do the drawing without any pain at all. Others stab, others miss the vein and take 2 or 3 tries and claim that my veins "rolled" or are narrow due to age. My doctor wanted his two office nurses to do the lab drawing in his office. The elder nurse, for several of my years, was excellent, until in the past few years started missing. The other., younger one was nervous from the beginning of her employment, seldom got it done on the first jab. Finally when both of them were in the same missing category, and with pain, I asked to go to the lab, where all they do is draw so they are totally in practice. Been doing that for the last few years, getting the doctor's order to go to the outside lab.

I deliberately try to put them at ease, like either just greet and relax or even to the point of a mini-meditation state, but this seems to make them more nervous. The more relaxed I get the more they say, "Are you all right?!" Sometimes when it's a guy nurse, they have more of a sense of humor. I said, "Are you the one who's not going to hurt me today?" and he said, "No, that one's out. Today you got ME!1"

[Mike 03]

27. Kicking for the interesting discussion

Nobody in my family has had the vaccine yet, although my mom just became eligible.

With the normal flu shot, my mother almost always complains of arm pain lasting a few days and for whatever lucky reason I've never even had a sore arm from the flu shot. No clue why.

[Buzz cook]

28. The more relaxed the patient

The less pain they feel.

While I agree that the vaccinator is the biggest determinant, a person who tenses their muscles is not going to have as much fun.

[SharonClark]

31. Agree.

My nurse practitioner niece got her's from a National Guard drive thru and it bled and the next day her upper arm was heavily bruised.
I suggested she complain about the training the NG was given because it obviously wasn't enough.