Jenifer’s Shelter Island journal: Like a shot in the arm

As promised, this week the topic is vaccinations, with a focus on those recommended for seniors as we get deeper into fall.  

However, maybe it’s also  about “un-vaccinations,” too. I was driving back home this morning after dropping my grandkids at school, and heard a report on NPR, regarding a potentially wide-spread measles exposure in California, after a frequent rail commuter was hospitalized with a case. I’m sure we’ve all become aware in the past few weeks of Pennsylvania’s efforts to contain the measles outbreak there. From Pennsylvania to California, with practically a whole vast country in between?  Considering that measles is highly contagious, it does kind of beg the question, “Where next?”   

I’ll be turning 80 this December, God-willing, so like most of us, I have some personal experience with vaccinations. I’ve always been under the impression that I must’ve been too young to have received a smallpox vaccination because I didn’t have one of those intriguing little raised circles on my arm, but research for this column indicates that smallpox wasn’t considered eradicated in the US until 1952, and vaccinations of children over the age of 1 continued until 1972. All I know is that I haven’t had smallpox — yet. 

I’m certain, however, that I received a course of polio vaccine when I was in the 3rd grade, and I have the “Polio Pioneer” card to prove it. My best friend and next-door neighbor, Marie, had died of polio the summer I was 4, while my brothers and I were here on Shelter Island. My parents never actually said so, but one of the main reasons they’d bought a summer house was clearly their terror of a disease that seemed to do much of its stalking in the summertime.

I remember it was during my 4th grade field day when I noticed a red rash on my arms, and I became convinced I had leprosy. I really had a case of “German measles.”  What wasn’t so amusing, however, was that “rubella” — its medically-preferred name — was dangerous, even deadly, to the fetuses of pregnant women. It wasn’t until 1969 that the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine was made available, along with already existing ones for polio and diphtheria, etc. for the immunization of infants and children. I have always felt extremely fortunate that my children and grandchildren have been able to receive such crucial and effective protection.

Fast-forward to December 2020, nearly a year into what now seems an almost surreal national shared experience of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 300,00 Americans had already died. Operation Warp Speed had been established to develop the only thing that could provide a true weapon against its carnage: a vaccine. By what some saw a miracle, just such a vaccine became available for national use by Dec. 18, 2020. Somehow, though, between then and now, even in the face of decades of scientific research showing incontrovertible proof of their benefits, the ongoing controversy regarding vaccines, their efficacy and their safety, has grown ferocious and has led to a decline in their use, possibly resulting in outbreaks of diseases once thought to be eliminated in this country, measles being a recent example.

This should not be a political issue, but the deep, sometimes deadly, divide in our country over what is considered information, misinformation or disinformation, can be as dangerous as the diseases themselves. Many websites, including the one for the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) address the main “anti-vaxx” objections that have been raised, including “causing autism,” “containing dangerous toxins like mercury and formaldehyde,” and the fear of “overloading a child’s immune system,” as well as offering comprehensive descriptions of, and specific CDC recommendations for, vaccinations best-suited to each age group. The chart (see below) applies just to us. The Senior Center has scheduled a Vaccine Clinic today, Oct. 1, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Shots are available for COVID, flu, RSV, shingles, pneumonia and tetanus. Appointments can be made by calling 631-749-1059.

There is a treasure trove of documented information online, the wise advice from a health professional we trust, and the experiences we all have had, to draw from. If we do our research and keep the goal of enlightened self-care in mind, what we ultimately choose to do will be like a shot in the arm.