Watch through to the end:
The news where I am has headlines pinpointing individual cases like those at the end of that video.
Although they all have their own personal reasons for not having taken part, they also mostly appear to accept their situation was of their own making and most do implore others to not take the route they did. Some though go to their end still denying there is even an virus called COVID-19 and I'm not sure if that not being able to come to terms with their situation is a better or worse position to be in...?
Some personal advise for the Needle Phobic:
Anyone not taking part because of a phobia of needles, I understand: In school as a young'un they were doing the Tuberculosis shot which is
nine needles in a square shape on the end of a chony syringe. Nightmare fuel. I'm going to be honest here: just hearing that it was 9 needles in a single jab made me refuse the vaccination the first year I was offered it and just didn't go to be injected, for fear of the needle - but the second year I was on a bit of a downer and thought "If it kills me it kills me at least I won't have to do homework or exams anymore", and I accepted my fate enough to enter the room...
I sat down with the nurse and it was the usual chitchat while everything was being set up. I can't recall the exact conversation but at some point I was able to advise them I could not guarentee I would not shake or jump or flinch. They showed me the needle, nine short stubby shiny little silver slivers seemingly no wider than a human hair each... my reaction was the verbal equivilent of "O_o" so, with my permission, another nurse came and headlocked me to pin my arm and stop me from jumping/thrashing while the first performed the inoculation.
"Sharp Scratch" the nurse said and yes it was the very definition of the words "Sharp Scratch", that's all it was, a feeling of a sharp scratch. So yes you can bet I felt a bit of a chump having got someone to basically pin me down because of that... It was fine and I have the TB jab scar on my arm still, like everyone who has had that jab has, to remind me of that event and how I was able to overcome and control that fear.
The funniest part was someone opened the door half way through and a queue of unsuspecting class mates saw nurses head-locking a kid to get injected. I can only imagine how many of them then expected that to just be how you get injected for TB. I still don't like needles and still have that same feeling I used to when encountering one - dread - it hasn't gone away, it's exactly the same feeling in the pit of my being I always got, but previously I allowed it to control my actions but now... I look away at something, an attendent or just a brick in the wall or a ceiling tile, but never at the needle being inserted... and I am able to control that feeling rather than it control me. I wait for the little Sharp Scratch and then it's all over almost like it had never happened.
If you, like me, have The Fear and are reading this wondering what the "Sharp Scratch" feels like, I hope the following helps: get someone you trust to poke you quite hard in the arm. I mean fairly hard like enough to hurt but not enough to bruise and get them to do it for like 1 to 2 seconds only. Not a millisecond prod but not a twisting 15 second agony. Just 1 to 2 seconds... That's about as painful as being jabbed with this vaccine got for me and for you it may not be even that painful. Personally, as I said above, I looked away and it was over in moments: On a scale of "Oh that was nothing" to "This is going to kill me" it was between "Was that it?" and "Oh, okay then". It's not comfortable but it's not going to harm you either: I have stubbed my toe more painfully than any jab has ever been for me including the TB nine needle horror-show. Stepping on an upturned (UK) electrical plug is way more painful. Stepping on a lego is more painful way more painful.
I know not all phobias are simply because something is going to cause pain, and that feeling of dread I get is totally irrational even now all these years later after all the other inoculations I have had including the two for COVID-19.
If this helps anyone control that fear, just one person, I'm absolutely delighted for you - you can, will and have controlled it!
www.hrsa.gov
