I met a second vaccine-hesitant person in as many days. This person is also a male POC, not a Trump supporter, and from a large family who has not gotten vaccinated. I'll call this guy J. Now J wasn't resistant or angry or anti-science. He was just hesitant. I didn't 'sell him' or 'shame him' on the vaccine. In fact J was the one who kept asking me questions 'how did it feel...did you get sick...I know someone who got the vaccine and died a few days later...' and on and on the questions went. Unprompted. I answered honestly:
My arm was sore. For like 2 days. I still worked out.
I felt some cold-like symptoms creep up on me. Slight coughing and throat irritation. I pre-gamed and post-gamed the shots by taking vitamin C, D, zinc, and aspirin to boost my immune system. My symptoms never got past the minor irritation.
I also get the flu shot every year and feel the same slight cough and throat annoyances. And I do the same vitamin regime.
There was a study in which ppl had terrible reactions to Moderna and Pfizer shots. Then it was revealed that a lot of these severe reactions were in the placebo group. People were falling out, losing their breath, experiencing panic...b/c of fake shots. Placebo groups have the same reactions to a new vaccine and medicines which can be extreme. He agreed that a lot of his worry was in his mind.
The hesitancy J had the coronavirus earlier in the year. But he knew that there were variants and he could get it again.
What I sensed was that J KNEW all of this information. He knew the facts, just like I know the calorie count on junk food, or that I should go to the doctor twice a year (but I don't), or that I should try to get to bed before midnight for my health (and I rarely do). The vaccine disinformation feels a lot like me talking to my super healthy friends and spouting stuff I've read online about healthy people who die suddenly to alleviate my guilt...
"Yeah, she ate kale every day and look at her now: dead. I heard she went to bed at 10pm every night and died cause she was too well rested. Hey, that's what I heard. You know I do my own research on youtube and there are some videos out there that say too many greens can actually shock the system...so I feel like my anti-green plan might be smart. Yes, I know she was hit by a car but still...it makes you think, doesn't it? Maybe kale slowed her down so the car could hit her. Huh? You didn't think about that, did you?'
You can be aware of facts and still not act on them. And you can use doubt and wild speculation to justify the inaction. There are gaps between fact awareness, personal truth, and then taking action. A lot hesitant people are in the gaps. Maybe talking things through helps them realize what they have known all along. One-on-one conversations allow people to have those quiet 'come to Jesus' moments in which they take action. It's so much easier to remain quiet and inert than to make an effort. Friends, colleagues, and family help push us out of the gaps of hesitancy. Now I should probably schedule a doctor's appointment, eat this salad, and drink 8 glasses of water. Yeah, that's what I should probably do.
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