Vaccines – The Choice is Yours

Before COVID-19 most of us didn’t know much about how vaccines worked. There were movies I saw in grade school, sponsored by Bell Telephone, that taught us about the world around us (I think you have to be over 70 to remember those movies). I remember they explained vaccines as a bunch of fake soldiers coming into your body, which caused your body to quickly build up real soldiers to blunt the attack. When your body found out the enemy soldiers were fake and didn’t need to be attacked, your body was left with this inventory of real soldiers that could beat back any real enemy soldiers that might attack later. It really wasn’t a bad way to explain vaccines to young people, but I suspect, because of COVID-19, we all know much more about how vaccines work and even how the new mRNA vaccines work. But, even with all this new information, many are still leery of many vaccines and, because of the freedoms we enjoy in this country, everyone has the right to make their choice.

The goal of my blog this week isn’t to try to convince you that vaccines are good or bad. By now, most of us have taken a stand on the vaccine issue and we’ve heard more than we’d like about each side. My goal in this blog is to talk about the choices each of us have and the decisions we need to make as fall and winter approaches. I will disclose that I’m a believer in vaccines, as you probably know from my earlier blogs, but I’ll try to pass on unfiltered information that I’ve gathered about where vaccines fit in as we look forward to the next few months.

For those of you who have decided that vaccines aren’t something you want for yourself, you should be taking extra precautions as fall approaches. Many scientists expect both COVID-19 and flu infections to increase as winter approaches. At the height of the pandemic, when we were all isolating and wearing masks, the number of flu cases dropped dramatically from their historical average. That will not be the case this year. This especially applies to older people, those who suffer from lung problems, have serious health issues and especially for those who are immunocompromised. The pandemic taught us how to avoid getting exposed and it is important that you take those precautions to protect yourself and your loved ones.

I also recognize that there may be those who have been vaccinated in the past for the flu, pneumonia, etc. but were hesitant about the new COVID-19 vaccines and decided against those vaccines. My hope is that you continue to stay up to date on the traditional vaccines that are available. There is a great web page that asks a few questions and then gives you a recommendation on what vaccines you need. I’ve given out this link before but here it is again  — link. I answered the questions and found out that I needed a dose of tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis vaccine (Tdap). I thought that was only needed when you are young or stepped on a rusty nail . . . not so, we need the dose every 10 years. The vaccines recommended at this site are all the traditional, time-tested vaccines.

For those of us who have decided that taking advantage of all the vaccines available is right for us, we are faced with many choices about when we should be vaccinated. I’ve read multiple sources that state that the traditional fall flu vaccine, pneumonia and COVID-19 can all be administered at the same time. The most common combination is getting the second COVID-19 booster and flu shot at the same time. Note, if for some reason you are a vaccine believer but have not been vaccinated for COVID-19 do it now, don’t wait. The same goes for those who have received the initial COVID-19 shots and booster but haven’t received the second booster — go ahead and get it now.

Here’s my experience, which seems to be a very common scenario, and the choices I made as to timing. I had the initial two Pfizer shots and the subsequent booster. In January of this year both my wife and I got COVID-19. I felt poorly for about 36 hours. My wife had the shivers and then felt fatigued for around three days. We felt the vaccines did their job by greatly reducing the affect of the virus. Now that the booster has been authorized, we plan on getting it this week. We also decided to wait until late October or early November to get our flu shot so that it would be the strongest during the traditional times that the flu is most prevalent. Again, there is no problem with getting both shots at the same time, even in the same arm at different shot sites. I think some officials have pressed combining the two shots because the uptake on the second booster has been slow and they hoped that those who were in the habit of getting their yearly flu shot would go ahead and get the second booster at the same time since they were already at the doctor’s office. I’m a big fan of not trying to second guess human nature or “tricking” people into certain behaviors. I’d rather have everyone get unfiltered information and leave how people use that information to them. Whether you get them at the same time or not is up to you.

The important point I want to make is the fact that there are lifesaving vaccines available. It is our choice as what is best for each of us. Don’t let a busy life, a lack of transportation or procrastination be the reason we don’t act on our choice.

Best, Thair