Herd Immunity

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I was vaccinated yesterday. It wasn't for COVID but rather something else. My arm is still sore. Many of the childhood diseases apparently are now coming back or new versions of the plagues are returning.

I received a Shingrix vaccine and a Tdap vaccine.

The Shingrix vaccine is to protect me against a variant of Shingles. It protects against shingles and long-term nerve pain.

The Tdap vaccination provides protection against 3 serious illnesses: tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough).

These shots became available in the last few months for the elderly population. So I may be one of the first people to get these shots as an old timer.

The reason why I took the shot was for Herd Immunity. If enough people develop a resistance, it limits the spread of the disease.

Herd immunity, or community immunity, is when a large part of the population of an area is immune to a specific disease. If enough people are resistant to the cause of a disease, such as a virus or bacteria, it has nowhere to go.

Though every person may not be immune, the group as a whole has protection. This is because there are fewer people who can catch the infection overall. The infection rates drop, and the disease gradually disappears.

Herd immunity protects at-risk populations. These include babies and people whose immune systems are weak and can’t get resistance on their own or can't tolerate a vaccine.

There is a virus spreading through Brazil called Zika Virus. At the moment around 63 percent of the population has had the virus and it is nearing Herd Immunity.
Vaccines can also raise herd immunity. One example is Polio which was primarily eradicated in the U.S. by vaccinations. The threshold for herd immunity due to Polio is around 80 percent.
Some diseases are very contagious. For example Measles is around 95 percent.

Source: What to Know About Herd Immunity

I am not afraid of getting vaccinated. Over my lifetime (75 years), I have been vaccinated many times. There was only one vaccine shot that was rough. About 55 years ago, I was vaccinated against the Black Plague. Now that was rough. I almost fainted within 30 minutes after receiving that vaccine.

The Black Death was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Europe from 1346 to 1353. One of the most fatal pandemics in human history, as many as 50 million people perished, perhaps 50% of Europe's 14th century population. Bubonic plague is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis.

After getting this vaccine many years ago, I felt the shear power of this highly fatal diseases.

Antivaxxers make me furious with their blatant ignorance and stupidity, but I am very anxious about the side effects of the vaccines even if they're not nearly as bad as the disease itself, especially after getting my last two covid vaccines. Since the third one was just a booster, I hoped the side effects wouldn't be as bad. Wrong! I spent the whole night feeling like I had malaria. Of course, I was told that this just means I have a strong immune system, but I really don't think I do even if I don't get sick often.

Also people with unusually strong immune systems are at a higher risk of developing autoimmune diseases like lupus or MS. You just cannot win.

After the experience with the covid vaccines I found that after even getting my annual flu shot this past fall I felt more "off" than usual. I usually just get a warm, red, itchy spot where I got the needle that goes away in a few hours.

My arm was sore for a couple days after the shots but it is fine now.