Teens Guard Your Arm, Gardasil Hurts!

Teens Guard Your Arm, Gardasil Hurts!

Saturday, January 5, 2008

filed under: health logic

Vaccine that prevents cervical cancer in girls has the reputation of being a very painful shot.

The Associated Press is reporting the rumors swirling around the Gardasil vaccine about how the shots are more painful than most. The pain reportedly ranges from slight discomfort to girls actually fainting. When we started reading this report we thought, duh, shots hurt but kids fainting? Did many girls faint from this shot or did one girl faint and it became the shot heard around the world? We turned to our resident pediatrician, Dr. Cara Natterson for some clarity...

"In my practice, I certainly hear many teens complain about the sting of the HPV injection. But it is not the only teenage shot that prompts a reaction. The tetanus shot and the meningitis shot also elicit their
fair share of whines. HPV probably stings more than most going in, but within several minutes, most kids say they feel fine. Motrin or Advil (ibuprofen) or Tylenol (acetaminophen) are good pain relievers. But most kids don’t need them." There you have it, sometimes shots elicit a little pain.

10 comments so far | Post a comment now >>

My understanding has been that the fainting after this shot is not due to the pain, but rather to the neurological damage caused by the shot.

- Nikki

Posted 01/10/08 01:01 PM

This shot is rediculously painful. I did not faint but came close to it. My arm swelled to twice its size and i got huge welts. I can’t lift my arm for a week after I get it. It is so painful and I normally don’t even bat an eye at getting shots. The pain going in is nothing compared to the pain immediately following… for a week afterward too.

- Amanda

Posted 01/10/08 04:38 PM

I agree that it wasn’t terribly pleasant, but let’s not foget that the shot is far LESS painful than cervical cancer. Or even HPV, for that matter, which infects 1 out of every 4 teenage girls, and requires several invasive procedures to detect and treat.

- Joann

Posted 03/12/08 10:34 PM

I got this shot last night. It was my third one. The first two hurt a lot but the one I got yesterday caused me to faint. I was fine because I’m used to getting shots. My mom & I were getting in my car and I felt really dizzy. I grabbed my moms arm and passed out, falling backwards, hitting my head on the floor very hard. I then was sent to the emergency room. Got a cat scan, echo, and ekg test and was sent home. My heads still pounding, my neck is really sore, and I fractured my tailbone. My advice about this shot is either A) Don’t get it or B) Wait in the doctors office for up to 15 minutes after getting the shot and make sure they check your blood pressure before you leave.

- Andrea

Posted 03/26/08 02:49 PM

Ive only gotten the first one and after the first day it only stung a little. Now its the second day and I cant move my arm without it hurting pretty bad and im good with pain. Ive had my nose and belly button done. Neither compare to this stupid shot.

- Taylor

Posted 07/15/08 04:42 PM

My mom is thinking about making me get this shot and i am more than terrifide!…shots,needles, fainting?!?! i dont think i can handle it considering the fact she wont listen to me about getting out of it! what can i ask her to convince her to change her mind?

- Sammy

Posted 07/20/08 11:14 PM

The HPV shot doesn’t cause neurological damage Nikki, and even if it did it’s impossible that it would cause so much damage as to make a person faint within fifteen minutes of getting it only for the symptom to disappear the next day. Trust me when I say brain damage does *not* act this way. Back on subject, I think the most important thing to do is to remember to sit and rest after this shot. If it is painful enough to cause girls to pass out, then relax for a bit. Drink something and don’t aggravate the situation. After a few minutes slowly go to your car and carefully get in. Wish I could give you a first hand experience, but I’m not getting it.

- goche21

Posted 08/03/08 12:44 PM

I got the second dosage of the shot today and my arm hurts like the dickens. But on the subject of fainting, I fainted once from a shot— not from the pain of it, though. It was afterwards, like Andrea discribed. I don’t think the fainting is directly related to the vaccine itself, but to medication in general. I just hope I don’t faint; I drive myself to and from these appointments…

- Allison

Posted 09/16/08 08:56 PM

I just got my last shot today, early in the morning. The first 2 shots did sting a little and made my arm hurt for a little while. But this last one, oh my, my arm is killing me. I’ve taken paint killers nothing seems to be helping. I just hope the paint will go away by tomorrow.

- amanda

Posted 12/06/08 11:44 PM

I’ve gotten all three of these shots, and honestly it didn’t hurt at all. I got at least one of these shots in the hip, which seems to lessen the pain. My sister also got the shot, as well as my friend, and there was no pain at all.

- Kelsey

Posted 12/10/08 09:39 PM