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I was happy to receive the flu shot this year, as I feel like it's "doing my part" to stop the spread of the influenza virus. Plus, any inoculation that can either prevent, or lessen the symptoms, of flu is motivation to me!
I've received the flu shot annually, for the past 10 years. I have the typical soreness at site, possibly a little tired that evening. But that's it.
This year...my shoulder muscle (at the site of the injection) is still painful, so much that I can't move my arm forward at shoulder-level, or lift my arm up over my head, without a sharp pain in that one muscle. If my arm is still, it does not hurt. It is affecting my sleep, as I am confined to sleeping on only my right side (it is my left arm that hurts).
Are there any other reports of this flu shot symptom? Did I just not move my arm enough after the shot (kind of "favored it"), or is there something else wrong??
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I had a quadrivalent flu shot (a new 1 for this year) . The same thing has happened to me. It has been almost 3 months & I did go to my doc. got Mobic(muscle relaxer) I have shoulder pain collarbone pain & usually can't sleep good. I just keep hoping it will get better. During the day its not as bad as night when I wake up. nothing really helps. I turned in a complaint to the CDC about this. The health dept. also knows. I'm retired but if I was working there would be some days of missed work over this. I would rather have the flu, a week of felling crappy & it's over, this is an unknown... I guess I will have to go back to the doc & get x-rays of my shoulder just to see what's up. Did you have a painful shoulder before the shot? I had some pain but nothing like this. How are you now?
November 4, 2013 - 2:05pmThis Comment
Is it possible to hurt from it over a year?
January 24, 2013 - 4:14pmThis Comment
I still hurt from it and my shot was September 23, 2009. And to the other posters who say their doctors have never heard of this..I have found that in most cases..this simply isn't true. This problem is not as uncommon as some would have you believe.
January 25, 2013 - 10:20pmThis Comment
I am also having severe pain from the flu shot. I received mine on Jan. 5. It is now 2 weeks later and the pain is getting worse! My pain didn't start until 4-5 days after the shot and it is progressively getting worse. It doesn't really hurt if I am not moving it, but I am unable to lift it without severe pain. Getting a shirt on and off is so painful that I feel like I might pass out. I have never experienced anything like this. I am worried about it, but it is helpful to know that others are experiencing this too. Think I will take my chances with the flu next year!
January 18, 2013 - 9:12amThis Comment
I previously posted a similar story: flu shot October 23, 2012, and then a worsening, sharp pain in my shoulder. I am relieved to report my symptoms are improving. It took me 11 weeks to be able to pull a shirt off without bending over and using gravity. It is still slow and ridiculously difficult, but at least I can raise that arm over my head again. Hooray!
I kept moving my arm as much as I could without shrieking. I finally asked my doctor about it. He recommended a different OTC med and encouraged me to yes - keep moving it. As Susan suggested to me, nasal spray flu vaccines sound like a good idea.
Hang in there. There is light at the end of the tunnel.
January 18, 2013 - 10:43amThis Comment
Please be sure to keep moving that arm or it will "freeze up" according to my doctor. I got my flu shot in early Sept and I'm finally mostly pain free as of this month. Some people experience the same pain for as long as a couple of years. Keep moving it, massage out the area every once in a while and drink lots of water. You want to flush/push out the part that you are having a reaction to. I have a feeling they put the shot in the wrong place, but that has yet to be proven to cause issues. Mine was up too high and too far forward.
January 18, 2013 - 9:49amThis Comment
My wife and I both got our flue shot about a month ago. For the last week she has complaining about here arm hurting. I have been doing very active things hunting and such that I had plenty of blame to go around for my pains. When I got home she continued to complain about her arm pain, I had lots of pain myself from hiking in the mountians. As all my other ache's and pains slipped away over the next few days at home the only pain left was just like hers. My arm. The pain in my arm, a ache with the slightest lift. From my sholder to the top of my hand. We compared our problems and they were exact. We both got our flu shot the same day. About a month ago. I was thinking it would get better, Although this looks to allot of this going around and it seams to be getting worse not better. (Add us to the list.)
November 18, 2012 - 4:36pmThis Comment
Has anyone tried anti-inflamitories perscribed by their doctor? I'm curious if anyone has had long-term success with it. My doctor gave me some after I was having the same issues from my flu shot in Sept. that lasted for well over a month. I just finished the prescription, and the pain is completely gone... So far. I also have full range of motion with my arm. It's like night and day. Crossing my fingers that it remains this way! My doctor said its rare, but my body reacted to the shot and I developed tendinitis.
November 17, 2012 - 10:59pmThis Comment
That's me, it's difficult to reach over the other side of my body and use my shoulder muscle to pull a top over my head. It IS better since I received the shot on Oct. 9th, but still not normal by any means.
November 17, 2012 - 5:08pmThis Comment
I am been experiencing the same problems. I received my flu shot on October 23, 2012. My arm was sore and range of motion was very limited, but it only really bothered me when dressing, or if I rolled on it in my sleep. It seemed to be slowly improving until I ran in a 5K 12 days after the vaccination. Since then, I've tried ibuprofen and heat, because my arm actively hurts instead of just being sore. At least my kids weren't bothered by their shots. I have always gotten a flu shot, but I'll think twice about it next year...
November 15, 2012 - 7:08amThis Comment