(Opinion) In an Empty Room, My Wife and I Got COVID Shot Number 4

My wife and I have decided to live through the many new versions of COVID-19 and that decision includes getting the vaccine and the recommended boosters.

We are traveling a lot this year, so as of last week - we're fully vaccinated which means we've been boosted twice. Neither of us had any side effects, with the exception of a slightly sore arm. I do feel this is the best strategy to combat COVID going forward, but that also means large percentages of the population need to follow suit.

We went to a local pharmacy to get our booster and it was easy to set an appointment. When we wanted to change the appointment, that was easy as well. When we went to the appointment, there was nobody else there and the pharmacist who administered the shot said it's very slow - unlike what we went through last year when people were fighting for appointments.

I do think the fact that boosted people still got the virus, plays a role in people's apprehension. Experts tell us, you can still get COVID or one of the variants but being vaccinated and boosted will likely keep you out of the hospital. Honestly, that's hard to prove but for us, we're willing to trust science.

The history of vaccines in the world are spectacularly successful. Vaccines have changed the world for diseases like polio, small pox, and measles. The COVID vaccine was based on more than two decades of work on previous vaccines - not just irresponsibly thrown together quickly like anti-vaccine people want us to believe. I believe the science - that this vaccine has saved thousands of lives and is what is allowing us to move about the world without a turbulent pandemic.

Science and medicine have also told us that in order to squelch this disease, it's extremely important for the masses to become vaccinated. Sadly, many of the third world nations don't have the means to accomplish this. Even worse is the fact that developed nations like ours are thriving on Facebook conspiracy theories and choosing not to get vaccinated.

What a shame.

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It's been over two years of COVID related misery and personally I'm sick of it all. It's not my role in life to constantly try to convince people to follow the science and do what's best for them, their families and the world.

My wife an I got vaccinated because we've chosen to trust science and our doctors. I'm writing about it because I feel that the more people speak out positively, the more others will feel comfortable to trust their doctors, as well. There will be no crusade or campaign to convince people to do as I do. If you choose to remain unvaccinated, that's your choice.

The current variant of COVID seems to be only dangerous to those with an underlying medical condition. The rest of us face some very uncomfortable flu-like symptoms that seem to last for about a week, or the sniffles or nothing. However, the government and corporate stigma around COVID still remains and if you get it, you might not die, but it will be very, very inconvenient, depending on your situation. I believe being fully vaccinated helps protect me from the world of quarantine and work stoppage. If that's the only protection I get out of this shot, I'll be perfectly satisfied.

More information about COVID-19 treatment options can be found at health.ny.gov/CovidTreatment.

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