Thread by @fleetstreetfox

We get asked about this a lost on #theNewsAgenda, so this may help some. A thread on #epilepsy, the #vaccination, and what to do when you get left off the priority list. 1/

I am in my mid-40s. I'm pretty healthy. I also have epilepsy. mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/e… 2/

A while ago my mum, who'd read something about the neurological aspects of #COVID19, said to me: "You should be among the first to get your shot." I didn't feel particularly at risk, so I went mmm, yeah, right. 3/

And she was all, no really. So to keep her happy I rang the GP and asked if I was on the priority list. Oh no, they said. There's other people before you. It's fine, I told mum. And I wrote a column about how I was happy to wait my turn. 4/ mirror.co.uk/news/politics/…

And my mum kept on at me. And then I saw that the 3rd wave was building in Europe, and most of those in hospital there were under 48. It's the parents, who've caught something circulated by their children. 5/

And I have a 5 year old. So, you know. 6/

Then friends and neighbours all got their jabs, and I was like, well, this is starting to look a bit shit. So I checked the priority list, and there's epilepsy in category 6, before the healthy over-50s. gov.uk/government/pub…

And mum is all come ON so I rang the GP, and said am I in this group, and they said no, and I said well for goodness' sake my neurologist thinks I'm special so sort it out. And they said someone will call you.

And no-one rang. So after a couple of days I rang back. You're not on the list, said someone different. Get me on it, I said. Someone's going through the files, she said. We're busy. Ring back in a week. 9/

Meanwhile, it's reported that my local vaccine centres will be closing in a few weeks because of a drop in supply. And I bumped into a neighbour on the dog walk, and said waiting on the GP, and she said oh you don't want to do that. 10/

She'd had hers, and so had her boyfriend (who had no underlying conditions), so she told me the website she'd been given to book their appointment. I went on it, put my NHS number in, and bang. Come and have a vaccine tomorrow, we've got LOADS. 11/

And I'm going this afternoon, and all excited. And my GP just texted me details for the website, and how to put my NHS number in, and get a jab tomorrow. Just like bloody buses. 12/

And my mum's all

So the point is:
1. Check if you're on the list
2. If you should be and aren't, tell your GP
3. Kick GP door down if necessary
4. Epilepsy is an arse, but just because others can't see it doesn't mean it's not there
5. Ask the jabbed how they did it

And finally, of course:

6. Listen to your mum. And Dolly.

/ends

BOSH! Drive-through jab. So impressed at the human race for achieving this. And all the volunteers giving up their time to help run it.