Points to consider on Covid-19 vaccination

Vaccine. The word vaccine may scare a lot of people. From the poke to your skin, to the possible side effects afterward. It is scary stuff.  

Another word that may scare people is the ‘C’ word, Covid. If you put these two scary words together, we get the Covid-19 vaccine. Although it does sound quite scary, I encourage you to get vaccinated. 

The CDC is still learning and studying the vaccine, and how it works to protect us. There is this new variant, the Delta variant, which some people fear as well. Then there are those of us who fear the side effects after the shot or the long-term effects.  

I’m not going to lie; I feared getting my vaccine at first too.  

While scrolling through Facebook over the weekend, I saw a post that stuck with me. It read, “I’m vaccinated and, no, I don’t know what’s in it – neither this vaccine, the ones I had as a child, nor in the big Mac, or in the hot dogs, or in other treatments… whether it is for cancer, AIDS, the ones for polyarthritis, or vaccines for infants and children. I trust my doctor when he says it’s needed.”

Even while growing up, our parents trusted science when it came to mumps, measles, rubella, and polio, chickenpox and even some vaccines that we didn’t even know how to pronounce. 

The post talks about how life is short and how we should be able to do more than go to work, go back home and repeat. We should be traveling, being with the ones we love, and doing so without fear of the future. We need that little feeling of being alive again. 

The author of the post said, “You are not vaccinated, I respect your choice, I am vaccinated, respect my choice. I’m vaccinated, not to please the government but: to not die from  Covid-19, to not clutter a hospital bed if I get sick, to hug my loved ones, to not have to do PCR  or antigenic testing to go out dancing, go to a restaurant, go on holidays and many more things to come.” 

This is exactly why I got my vaccine. I do not want to die from Covid-19, nor clutter a hospital bed if I get sick. I want to be able to be around those I love, and I’m sure you do too. 

Wouldn’t you rather be safe than sorry?  

The CDC says that Covid vaccines have undergone the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history. Yes, more safety monitoring than all the other vaccines we have had to have and are still alive to talk about. Although the CDC does not know the long-term effects of the vaccine, they have got to start somewhere.  

The Mayo Clinic says short-term effects could include pain in the shot area, a fever, fatigue, headache, chills, nausea and vomiting, muscle pain and swollen lymph nodes. But wouldn’t you rather have these simple short-term symptoms than be in a hospital bed or see someone you love die from Covid-19? I know I would.  

It is super exciting to see students on campus again, let’s keep it that way. Think about getting the vaccine, I want to go tailgating and to different sporting events. I want to be around large groups of people and not have to worry if I’ll get sick from going out. If you’re nervous, just call your doctor’s office and ask any questions you might have or go to your online portal and write them a message.  

With this new Delta variant, it is important to consider getting vaccinated. According to the CDC, the vaccine is effective in protecting you from Covid, severe illness and death. The vaccine also reduces the risk of people spreading the virus and even teaches the immune system how to recognize and fight the virus. Say you did get Covid, even though you were vaccinated, your symptoms are likely to be less severe.  

I want to stay on campus and be able to do what I want, when I want. I want to enjoy life without a mask on. I want to have a good college experience. By getting vaccinated, we can make our college experience a lot more worry free and receive a lot less emails from Dean Bresciani regarding Covid-19. 

Whether you are vaccinated or not, I respect your opinion. Everyone has different thoughts toward the vaccine, so I figured I would put my opinion out there too. Maybe take what I said into consideration and get vaccinated.