Getting vaccinated is essential if we are to defeat COVID-19 — without a vaccinated population, the variant will keep evolving, increasing in severity and transmissibility. We’re all sick of dealing with the virus, from incessant mandate revisions to having to remember to grab your mask before heading out, keeping up with COVID is exhausting. Nevertheless, we can’t move forward without everyone’s cooperation. It is critical that we all do our part to safeguard our loved ones this holiday season as Omicron levels rise across the country, especially because we’ve seen this narrative play out before through the Delta variant. Individuals were reluctant to pay attention until it was too late, and Delta spread like wildfire, infecting thousands of people across the globe.
This year, we must stress the importance of vaccines so that we do not find ourselves in the same predicament as last year. The holidays are filled with super-spreader events — everyone is traveling and congregating in congested rooms, hugging and kissing family and friends, it would be unsurprising if we see a rise in cases.
If you haven’t been vaccinated already, I strongly advise you to do so for the sake of the people you’ll be visiting this Christmas season and throughout the New Year. If you can’t do it for yourself, do it for your mother, father, grandparents, friends, and so on. If you are concerned about receiving the vaccination, I recommend consulting with a doctor to alleviate any anxieties. Furthermore, listen to those that are professionals, as they have devoted their lives to science, spending countless years to earn their titles. The vaccine’s side effects are substantially less severe than those of the virus, and they usually only last a day, whereas the virus can linger for 14 days and have dangerous long-term implications. We all have a responsibility to do the utmost to prevent the virus from continuing to spread and take the lives of people around the world.