To quote the anti-vaxxers amongst us:
“It’ll never happen to me… I only eat bio!”
Or
“I don’t want them to put that poison into my body!”
Or worse still
“It’s all a global conspiracy!”
These so-called reasons for not having Covid vaccinations have, no doubt, in one form or another, been heard by us all. Some are so far-fetched that they enter the realms of science fiction, whilst others are seemingly born out of a misplaced fear of social conformity.
Writing this piece as someone who knows first-hand that Covid certainly isn’t conspired fearmongering and is, in fact, a very real and deadly virus, I can’t help but marvel at the sheer selfishness of those who ‘choose’ to put others at risk for the sake of their own self-absorbed delusions.
This opinion may sound unduly harsh but think for a moment of those around you (and I have no doubt there will be many) who have been affected by this brutal pandemic. Almost five and half million people have lost their lives to Covid around the globe and yet, the propaganda into its validity still absurdly manages to circulate.
For me, as someone who had been vaccinated, Covid came into my life like a cruel thief. Robbing me of my energy and striking me down physically in a way that was far worse than any flu I have ever experienced. At one point, my throat felt as though it were closing-up altogether, making breathing a constant effort. This, coupled with the relentless coughing was enough to make me question my ability to recover. It was real and it was terrifying, and, looking back, I can only wonder what my condition would have been had I NOT had the vaccine.
Buddha famously wrote: “In protecting oneself, others are protected; In protecting others, oneself is protected.”
Reminding myself of this, I find it somewhat ironic that the new-age spiritualists, who frequently display statues of Buddha within their homes are so often the ones who feel that they are somehow exempt from the societal responsibilities needed in order to save countless lives.
And it’s not just our ‘woke’ generation that has given birth to the anti-vaxxer propaganda. Conspiracy theorist, Dr Alexander Ross, the author of a pamphlet that circulated widely in Montreal in 1885 during an outbreak of smallpox in the city, assured his readers that the vaccination did not prevent smallpox. Instead, he claimed that it actually caused other serious diseases such as syphilis and even smallpox itself, and that it killed children “outright”.
What’s more, Ross proclaimed that there wasn’t really an epidemic in the city and, if there was, the best way to protect yourself was “pure air, cleanliness, diet and temperance”. Sound familiar? (Ross, it turns out, got himself vaccinated during the epidemic).
So, I implore all you doubters to ask yourselves if your belief in the many conspiracy theories is stronger than the risk to yourself and to those all-important people around you.
Whether young or old, weak or strong, we are learning that the virus is continually evolving to ensure that it doesn’t discriminate!
Ultimately, if just one anti-vaxxer changes his or her mind after reading this article, I will see it as a victory against not only the pandemic but of societal ignorance in a world where we so desperately need to unite.