Trust Science, Get Vaccinated
MEDICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH UPDATE
It’s a good day. Today the FDA’s vaccine advisory panel voted to approve Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine for people16 and over, and the FDA is expected to authorize its use within the next 48 hours.
Help is on the way.
BUT WAIT! Before you get too excited, remember that until we have widespread uptake of the vaccine, our best defense against coronavirus is still our own behavior. Staying safe this winter (and beyond) means strict adherence to masking, distancing, hand washing, and avoiding crowded spaces, especially indoors.
So don’t let your guard down! My own family’s COVID saga is an example of coronavirus’ cruel, relentless, and invisible presence. The case rates are surging, hospitals are near capacity, and we haven’t even hit the Christmas travel season.
You want to avoid getting COVID-19 at all costs. Even though you could very well have a very milder course of illness like my husband had, you could also get a whole lot sicker and even die. As you may know, yesterday alone cost us over 3000 American lives from COVID-19.
You also could be one of the long-hauler patients whose symptoms linger for weeks to months after the initial illness—well after the virus has cleared their body. Many of my patients who’ve had COVID describe lasting fatigue, brain fog, and muscle aches that significantly interfere with their quality of life.
And last, you don’t want to be a link in the chain of infection. Even if your illness lands you in bed for only a few days, your infection could easily spread to someone less fortunate who ends up dying from COVID.
Should YOU get the vaccine? YES! Regardless of your age, race, or weight, the vaccine has been proven 95% effective against COVID-19. The safety profile is excellent so far.
This is as close to a miracle as it gets.
There are two known common potential side effects of the vaccine:
pain, redness, and swelling at the injection site, and
transient body aches, fever, and/or fatigue
Whereas COVID is a wrecking ball on our bodies, minds, social structures, and economy, these side effects typically can be managed with Advil and hydration.
It’s also important to recognize that these are NOT signs of COVID-19. Rather, they represent our immune system appropriately responding to the vaccine and readying the body to fight off the real deal. In fact, it is scientifically impossible to get COVID from the vaccine. (Just like it’s impossible to get the flu from the flu shot.)
Rarely, an allergic reaction can occur immediately after getting a vaccine. This happened to two coronavirus vaccine recipients in Britain this week. Both people had known medical histories of severe allergic reactions. What does this mean for YOU? People with a significant history of allergic reactions should not get the vaccine until more research is done to determine exactly what component of the vaccine caused the reaction.
Naturally, many people are asking about the long-term safety of the vaccine. Here’s the deal: the vaccine recipients in these trials will be studied for years to come. COVID hasn’t been around long enough for us to fully know the long-term safety profile, but based on what we know from the tens of thousands of vaccine recipients so far, the safety profile is excellent and, ultimately, it stands to reason that it cannot be worse than COVID itself.
What’s really cool is that preliminary data shows that after the first shot, we are at least 50% protected from disease—and that our immune system is fully ready to fight COVID-19 just FIVE DAYS after the second shot. (For the Pfizer vaccine, the second shot is given three weeks after the first.)
THIS IS AWESOME. I can’t wait to get my first dose—hopefully later this month!
So here’s my advice for you today:
Plan to get vaccinated unless you have a history of severe allergic reactions to vaccines. It is safe and effective, and the immunity from it seems to last at least three months. (We will learn just how durable the immune protection is after months and years of ongoing study.)
If you’re on the fence, take a look around you. Remind yourself what you have sacrificed this year. Take stock of the grief, loss, anxiety, and fear you’ve experienced. How could a sore arm compare to all of that suffering?
Encourage your friends, families, and coworkers to get vaccinated. Help allay their fears and direct them to the facts. Far too many people hesitate to get vaccines out of fear and misinformation—yet are willing to listen to people they trust.
Plan for a long winter ahead. Rethink (and ideally cancel) any holiday travel plans. And picture a smaller, cozier holiday celebration—outdoors, distanced, and in small groups (ideally only in your “pod”). Consider investing in a fire pit, heated blankets, and extra warm outerwear to celebrate the season!
Know that next year, once widespread vaccination has been achieved, we will be MUCH better off. While we will still be wearing masks, distancing, and washing hands, I expect summer camps to be open in many places and schools to be back to “almost normal” in fall 2021. I know that I’ll be dancing in the streets if these predictions are right!
Got more questions? Join me and WUSA anchor and award-winning journalist Lesli Foster TONIGHT at 8:30 pm ET on Instagram LIVE! We’ll discuss the vaccine and how to get through the winter safely.
I will see you next week. Until then, be well.