Fall means it’s time for just about everybody to get up to date on their flu and COVID-19 vaccines – and a lot of older adults also need protection against another risky winter virus, RSV.
Yes, you can get your flu and COVID-19 shots at the same time. Don’t call them boosters — they’re not just another dose of last year’s protection. The coronavirus and influenza are escape artists that constantly mutate to evade your body’s immune defenses, so both vaccines are reformulated annually to target newer strains.
Long Covid and chance of severe illness/death each time. Yeah, it sucks to feel like shit for a day or two, but I would regret trading that for long covid.
There’s so many places to go, incredible food to try, relationships to keep, new and old experiences in general. Long covid or death impacts every single one. So I always just sigh and get it.
Finally, it’s better societally as we could keep transmission low. There is always the chance that you get it and unknowingly spread it to someone with a compromised immune system and they die. That death impacts their family, friends, and the economy if that particularly matters to you. The social contract asks us to sacrifice a little for the sake of the greater good, but it does not demand it.
Still, I don’t terribly fault people for skipping it these days. That kind of risk is often accepted with non-covid things. Humans don’t like discomfort for the sake of a future maybe. If I wasn’t so concerned about my own quality of life, perhaps I’d skip it too.
Edit: I was scrolling through my calendar and realized another massive reason I always get the vaccine. It allows you to choose your own window of feeling like shit. For example, I travel a lot and wouldn’t want to miss any of it by getting covid. Choosing a couple random days to tank the shit feeling means a lower chance of feeling like shit in another country when I’m not prepared. Truly I envy those who feel fine after the shot.
