I’m Not Anti-Vaccine, I Just Don’t Believe in the COVID-19 Vaccine

While many of us are scrambling to find a place to get vaccinated and protected, not surprisingly, there are some folks who don’t believe or trust the recommendation that they should get a COVID-19 vaccine.

Why?

I’m Not Anti-Vaccine, I Just Don’t Believe in the COVID-19 Vaccine

Surprisingly, it typically isn’t because they are against all or most vaccines.

Often, they just have a problem with the COVID-19 vaccines.

Why?

In addition to being scared away because of conspiracy theories about microchips, tiny robots, and the COVID-19 vaccine making you “hackable,” some others are simply worried that the vaccines were developed too quickly.

And that’s not an unreasonable fear, as they were developed relatively fast, at least as compared to most other vaccines.

Still, that doesn’t mean that any important steps were skipped while these vaccines were developed and tested or that they are not safe and effective.

What else are some of these folks concerned about?

“…mRNA vaccines do not interact with a person’s DNA because the mRNA does not enter the nucleus of the cell. Cells break down the mRNA quickly. Based on how mRNA vaccines work, experts believe they are unlikely to pose a specific risk for people who are pregnant. However, the actual risks of mRNA vaccines to the pregnant person and her fetus are unknown because these vaccines have not been studied in pregnant women.”

Vaccination Considerations for People who are Pregnant or Breastfeeding

Some think that the covid-19 vaccines might alter their DNA and somehow turn them into a different type of human, even though it is clear that they can’t.

“Twenty-three women became pregnant after participating in Pfizer’s mRNA vaccine clinical trial. Pfizer reported one poor pregnancy outcome in someone in the control/placebo group – meaning they had not received the vaccine.”

You asked, we answered: Can mRNA vaccines cause infertility?

They might also be worried that getting vaccinated could affect their fertility, even though that idea, like most of the others, is borne from conspiracy theories.

Still don’t believe that getting a COVID-19 is the best way to protect yourself and those around you?

“If someone declines the vaccine, you can say, “May I ask why? What have you heard in your community?” It is a less judgmental way to find out what they may be thinking, giving patients the opportunity to give frank voice to concerns they might have while attributing them to others.”

COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy: 10 tips for talking with patients

Talk to your health care provider, who can likely address all of your concerns and can hopefully help you make the right choice to get vaccinated and protected.

More on COVID-19 Vaccines

• COVID-19 Vaccination Questions and Answers
• Fainting After Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine
• Have Thousands Been Negatively Affected After Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine?
• Side Effects After the Second Dose of the COVID-19 Vaccine
• Are They Putting the COVID Vaccine in Flu Shots?
• I’m Not Anti-Vaccine, I Just Don’t Believe in the HPV Vaccine
• I’m Not Anti-Vaccine, I Just Don’t Believe in Flu Shots
• Ask 8 Questions Before You Skip a Vaccine
• More Questions to Help You Become a Vaccine Skeptic
• It’s the ‘vaccine hesitant’, not anti-vaxxers, who are troubling public health experts
• It’s Not Just Anti-Vaxxers Who Worry About Vaccines
• CDC – Vaccination Considerations for People who are Pregnant or Breastfeeding
• ACOG – Vaccinating Pregnant and Lactating Patients Against COVID-19
• Vaccine Q&A: Safety, Skepticism and How Long Protection Will Last
• Speaking of Psychology: Will people accept a COVID-19 vaccine? with Gretchen Chapman, PhD
• ASRM Issues Statement on COVID-19 Vaccines, Joins Other OB/GYN Groups on Community-Wide Statement
• No Signs COVID-19 Vaccine Causes Infertility
• You asked, we answered: Can mRNA vaccines cause infertility?
• The False Rumors About Vaccines That Are Scaring Women
• COVID-19 Vaccines: Myth Versus Fact
• COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy: 10 tips for talking with patients
• COVID-19 Vaccination Hesitancy in the United States: A Rapid National Assessment
• Is Dr. Hooman Noorchashm’s #ScreenB4Vaccine being used by RFK Jr. to spread fear of COVID-19 vaccines?
• Antivaxxers’ efforts to undermine confidence in COVID-19 vaccines continue apace
• What are COVID-19 mRNA vaccines? Science to help debunk myths