Why Vaccines and Boosters are Important
What does testing COVID positive mean? What symptoms will I have? Is this fatal? What’s the “new” normal? Are things going back to how they were? At first, it was mayhem because no one knew what the virus was and what it did. As weeks became months, we learned more about the symptoms and how to tackle it, maybe even prevent it. COVID-19 was something we no longer feared (as we can see in the uptick in cases). Scientists around the world worked hard in learning how to protect people from COVID and mass produced vaccines. After a year, most of us took those vaccines and boosters. Yet, some people still got COVID-19 after getting the jabs. How come?
What’s a vaccine? A vaccine is a weaker form of the virus, which gets injected into our body in order for our immune system to build natural antibodies against the virus. Think of it like tempering something while cooking. In order for it to work, you need to introduce your ingredients little by little until everything settles down and there’s no more sputtering. How does this help you fight off COVID-19? Your body has tasted a bit of the virus in a weakened state, so it knows how to defend itself against a full on attack because of it’s antibodies. Make sense?
Omicron. What is that? Another COVID strain?! How many jabs are we going to need to take? I know, I know. Every time you put on the news, instead of hearing updates of how gas prices are back down (don’t think that’s happening any time soon sadly), you’re hearing about another strain of COVID. What does that mean? Viruses are living things. They have feelings and a mind of their own. So what? Well that means that they’re adaptable to change. Mutations are common in viruses and that means that they can alter their genetic makeup to become stronger against certain threats. So why do we have to take vaccines and boosters if they’re not going to protect us from the mutations?
The number of mutations possible is infinity. There will always be some other bug out there to get you, but think of it like this. Not knowing what types of threats can damage your car in any sort of accident doesn’t mean that you would drive without insurance, does it? Vaccines are like insurance for your body–your body has the basic immune response ready in case you ever get COVID. Any fever or symptoms you feel after getting the vaccines are NORMAL! Why does this happen? Your body is actively forming a defense against the virus and in some cases, you experience COVID-lite. Think of this as a preview of what could have been 10 times as worse.
You test positive even after the vaccines and booster. Is it the same? I can tell you how that felt, because I just got over the big C. Due to the vaccines and boosters, most places around the world have lifted restrictions as taking a step towards “normalcy.” New York though, has kept the mask mandate and in my opinion, rightly so. I always wash my hands and make sure I’m carrying hand sanitizer. Yet I tested positive. How? Not important. Why? It goes to say that I can have faith in knowing that no matter how I got the virus, I was good for 2 years before anything happened. It’s only now, that I have traveled out of the country for work and got sick. What that tells me is that I was doing something right in preventing it for all that time.
Testing Positive
Day 1:
I was feeling absolutely fine the first day but as the day progressed and the sun set, I felt like my energy was setting with it. The aches started and along with them came the chills. In 100 degree weather, imagine me sleeping with three blankets and no AC. It’s mid-August and I’m dressing like it’s the dead of winter. My throat was achy, I was achy and I couldn’t stop shivering. Luckily I had some Sudafed (the severe Flu kind) and Augmentin. I’ve had enough throat infections to know what I would need, so please do not self diagnose or self medicate. Instead go see your doctor and tell him what you feel is happening. I took Advil for the pain and the first day, I slept it off.
Day 2:
I have absolutely NO ENERGY. I could barely do the dishes. My biggest concern was developing shortness of breath and that happens because of congestion. I made sure I drank lots of water, had hot soup, coffee, some herbal tea and I continued the medications. My fever spiked at 102 and I had the chills.
Day 3:
Everything was almost back to normal. I had a dry cough which wasn’t too bad. No more aches and pains and more importantly, my energy was back. I had no fever either.
I made sure I had both vaccine and booster. This is why my symptoms didn’t last as long. Sure, it depends person to person. I’m a bit over weight and I workout daily. I eat what I like but try to maintain some sort of balance. So you can see, I’m not the healthiest person out there but I overcame the infection fast because I was vaccinated. I’m sure you’ve read how people have wound up in the hospital, barely able to breathe. Those are real cases! Does it happen to everyone? No. But can it? Yes! Each person is an individual. Your body’s response will always be different from mine. But what do we have in common? Protection against the virus by being vaccinated.
There is still controversy regarding the vaccines and their side affects. Some even doubt their validity because they were formulated in a short amount of time. Each of you have an opinion which is your right but at the end of the day, is being safe better than being exposed?
