Get the jab and give yourself a fighting chance

On 13 August, I walked into my company vaccination site, suffering one panic attack after the other but determined to see it through.

As mother of a beautiful four year-old boy, I have so much more to live for and decided that believing in the anti-vaxxers would do more harm than good.

I composed myself, took deep breaths and got the jab. Almost a full week later, I have felt no side-effects. For me it is about trust.

We trust the medicines given to us by medical practitioners we believe are capable. I have been told vaccines do not
prevent a virus but simply build one’s immune strength in the event of infection.

So why is the world being made to believe, by a handful of untested theorists, that the Covid vaccine is any different?

There are naysayers who ask why the Covid vaccine was developed so quickly, if indeed it is safe to use, or if this is a way to control population numbers.

From 5G towers to the influence of Bill Gates, the conspiracy theories are rife. But what they do not say is that
the coronavirus is not the first of its kind.

Since the Sars outbreak in Asia in 2008, scientists have been developing vaccines, adjusting technologies to adapt to the continually changing strains of various viruses.

These are the things that anti-vaxxers do not share as they sow seeds of doubt among those who do not do their own research.

They will tell you that testing was not thorough, rushed and obviously not safe, that the vaccine skipped steps because manufacturers were rushing to make a profit.

By simply reading and educating oneself, one learns that through government and donor funding, research was made faster and vaccine developers were able to test many factors simultaneously.

It is the baseless theories that lead to fewer people presenting themselves for vaccinations that is dangerous. Each to their own, but each should also read and get informed.

We all need to give ourselves a fighting chance.