The flu shot is something that is needed only once a year, but a person’s very first flu vaccination always requires a second vaccination that same year, given after 30 days. So while the flu season is slowing down in most states (but still moderate in Texas, Arkansas, Virginia, Maryland, and Hawaii), I made sure Winter got her booster this week at her 7 month mark. Since there is such a stretch of time until the next well-baby appointment, I also took the opportunity to check her weight. She weighed in at 15lb 5 oz, which, after plugging it into my Growth app, put her at the 20th percentile. She’s back on track with her weight trends from previous appointments, after the dip into the 14th percentile last month. Our pediatrician’s office is shared by several doctors, and apparently you can even go in to use their scales for free during their lunch hour.

Shots can be painful, especially over the following days. When I immunize people at my day job, I always tell them to move their arm around like crazy for the day to get that fluid out of that localized site. This way it will hurt less the next few days. Windmill arms? Great, go crazy! Hitting the gym after? Even better!

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Pediatricians used to advise parents to give fever reducing medicines, like Tylenol or Advil, pre-emptively, before shots. In theory, this could minimize the injection pain and also reduce a fever that may or may not result from the vaccine. Some pediatricians may still suggest this. I was surprised to read that there was a study on this practice which revealed that infants given Tylenol before a shot actually had a reduced the number of antibodies to the vaccine, which might suggest less protection from the disease. There’s a little more explanation about the findings of the study here. I keep the Tylenol on hand in case she does get a high grade fever, but it hasn’t happened yet.

For newborns, I’ve read that breastfeeding and skin to skin contact during a painful procedure can actually alleviate pain. Has anyone tried doing this for your baby’s neonatal heel pricks or first shots? My clinic unfortunately does not allow for this, but I’ve always breastfed after the shots and it calms her down, and they let me hang out in the examination room to do so. Usually she will just flinch when the needle is inserted – I always describe this feeling to my patients as a pinch, because that’s not the part of the shot that actually hurts – it’s the fluid going into your muscle that you can really feel, and that’s what always brings on her tears. Today she surprised me and didn’t even cry.

I bicycle her legs around and massage the area after shots to get that fluid out of the area so it will be less painful the next few days. I should also add that I do this while singing that song by Queen – “Biiiiicycle, biiiiicycle, I want want to ride my biiiiicycle.” I learned a great tip from my parent baby class recently – if you keep the bandaid on for the rest of the day, even though the bleeding, if any, stopped very soon after the shot, the bandaid will serve as a  great reminder for you to massage the area every time you do a diaper change.

Some babies get very cranky after vaccinations, and some get really sleepy. For the most part, Winter seems to err more on the sleepy side, but after her previous vaccine series, she laid in her crib before bed making delirious-sounding babble for almost half an hour. It was so funny my husband even recorded it.

What kinds of experiences have you had after vaccinations, and what methods have you tried to comfort and soothe your baby?

*The information on this site is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment, and is for education purposes only.  Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.