What are your (respectful) thoughts on getting the vaccine?

[Veesam]

I know this is a touchy subject, but I just wanted to gauge where this community is at in the spectrum. This is in no way pushing either side - as I am educating (and sitting with myself) I am curious what everyone's thought process is.

[kelsie]

Thank you for posing this question! I'm also curious how everyone else is feeling about the covid vaccine in general.

I'm not unilaterally against vaccines, but I really question the need to vaccinate over everything. I also feel it's good for my immune system to come into contact with things so my body can strengthen it's defenses. I'm skeptical about the safety/efficacy of them in the longterm both on an individual and societal level. Are vaccines contributing to the myriad of medical problems that many modern people are faced with? Are we creating the conditions that require viruses to mutate, making them even more deadly for humans?

Specifically for COVID, it seems like some (most??) of the vaccines don't even protect the spread of the disease--it only prevents the disease from becoming severe should you contract it. I personally don't feel like I'm at risk of getting severely sick should I contract the illness, so I'm not sure it's providing any true benefit to myself or others since I could still spread the disease around...

[Becky]

I feel very similar to Kelsie -- I'm not antivax (my kids had pretty much the recommended schedule), but I don't think it's a cure-all. Right now we're very focused on immune/nervous system support.

For this specific virus (covid), I really don't want to get the vax for either myself or my kids, YET. One year ago, it was considered "fast track" for a vaccine to be developed in 3-5 years, so [my thinking is that] now we've got widescale population studies for these vaccines that have been developed in only a few months.....I'm VERY skeptical at being told it's "perfectly safe" when a year ago it would have been unsafe simply due to the development timeline. It's one thing to say "the risks of the virus outweigh the dangers of not fully testing the vax," but that's not the line I'm hearing, so I'm distrustful. The thing is, I think that's a totally legitimate POV, that the risks of the virus are greater than the risks of the vax...I just don't hear any risks of the vax being mentioned in the thought process, and one of these vaxes uses a new type of technology/delivery system!

That said, my inlaws have had theirs. They're both over 70 and my FIL has numerous health issues that wouldn't play well with covid. Getting the vax has eased their worries quite a lot, which I think is probably good for their overall health. My parents (closer to 80) are hesitant for exactly the same reasons as me, but they're mostly isolated at home and I don't see that being a long-term fix either (though who knows? They seem to be enjoying themselves a surprising amount, lol).

I spent last weekend with a nurse friend who is currently answering a covid questions phone line AND an acupuncturist/licensed chinese medicine doc who works with pregnant women and both of them tended to be in the "let's see how this goes" camp, for similar reasons as I've mentioned above.

[Carmen]

Thank you Veesam for bringing this topic to the forum.

I currently work with people who are infected and since I'm viewed as a "front line worker" I was on the top of the list to get the vaccine. I always felt reluctant about it mainly because of how fast it was produced and how little I know about the side effects it will have on a long term. So I really resonate with what Kelsie and Becky expressed.

On the other hand I have to think about my family and friends. I consider myself an healthy person and I'm still young... but there is not the case for all my loved ones.

On the days letting up to me getting the the vaccine I asked God for the best outcome. As I sat down with the doctor and he asked me about allergies I told him that I was only allergic to penicillin. And to my surprise he told me that they are not vaccinating people with this type of allergies due to lack of research on it.

All of this to say that I don't feel like I know enough about it to make a decision. Until then I'm still asking for guidance on this subject.

[evangelitsia]

I was definitely in the camp of not wanting it and being really worried about it. I work as a massage therapist and literally cannot physically distance for my job but have been wearing a mask and sometimes goggles, and my clients are all required to wear masks (as per my regulating body's guidelines). I had an autoimmune disease as a child so that was part of my worry as well.

I seem to have been one of the people who may have contracted an early strain in January 2020 after coming back to Canada from a trip in Cuba. I was acutely sick all throughout Jan-March 2020 and took about 7 months for my liver and spleen to return to normal functional ranges. I am 27F (was 26), very physically active, eat well, take my supplements/herbs etc. etc. Maybe it was just because of my autoimmune tendencies but ooooof. I would not want that again, and definitely not that severity.

I am staying with my parents and we spend a lot of our time taking care of my grandparents and my uncle who has cancer. When the opportunity came to get the vaccine I really had to meditate and pray and gauge what was the best choice for me. It was just very clear that it wasn't just a choice for me, but one for the health of those who I love. And my clients and community. I got my first dose of the Pzifer vaccine and it made my headache a bit worse for maybe 10-15 mins (but I am currently recovering from a concussion and only had 3 hours of sleep so there's that to factor in as well). I have some local tenderness but otherwise feel just fine. I am happy with the choice I've made.