Health experts: Side-effects are expected after the COVID-19 vaccine, and that's OK

"When we inject the body with a vaccine, we are effectively injecting an irritant to the body. The body is creating an immune response, and when the body fights, that it makes you feel sick," explained Dr. Christopher Chao, a family medicine doctor at WakeMed Hospital.

Chao said he had a rough experience with his second dose of the Pfizer vaccine.

"It took about 72 hours for me to return to normal. I had nausea and a low-grade fever for about 48 hours. It wasn't very pleasant. My wife had the second vaccine and [experienced] fatigue and soreness, and that was it," he described.

Chao added that side-effects vary person to person. Some have none, while others can experience soreness of the arm or even "low-grade fever, chills, fatigue, headache, nausea, some vomiting, dizziness, body aches and even swollen lymph nodes at the site of the injection."

"These are normal side-effects. This is your body saying, 'Hey, something is in me. I don't like it. We're going to create a response,'" said Chao. "The reactions that you see are the body's normal reaction when they encounter an antigen, and it's making that defense for the future."

Chao said it's too early to know the side-effects of Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine.

Durham resident Reed Benjamin said he received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine around noon, went back to work, played basketball after work and felt fine. But things changed later that evening.

"When I went to bed that night, I had really terrible aches and pains throughout my joints," said Benjamin. "I was in bed, but it felt like I was tossing and turning on concrete all night."

Benjamin added that, despite also having "having the worst headache of his life," the side-effects didn't last long.

"By the morning, the aches and pain had gone away," he said. "I would definitely recommend taking the next day off of work. I think you should plan to."

Carla Kelly, who received her first dose of the Moderna vaccine last month, says that's what she plans to do.

"I'm not really worried," said Kelly. "I'm just more aware that I might be tired because that's the most common thing I've heard after the second shot [is that] a lot of people have been tired. I'm just preparing."

Her next shot is scheduled for Friday so she’ll have the weekend to recover, if needed.

Women report worse side effects than men

"Don't be afraid. It's another shot. Yes, my arm was more sore than anticipated, but other than that, I would say there's nothing to be afraid of," said Kelly.

Those who experience a cough, shortness of breath, loss of taste and smell or any side-effects lasting longer than 72 hours should seek medical attention. Health experts said the other side-effects, if any, should go away within a couple days.