How fitting is it that I’m going to talk about work on Labor day. Eh?
Buckle up, it’s a long one.
Good golly, Ms. Molly, where do I start?
I know I spoke a bit about the mandate in my August Reflections post but I thought it warranted more information. Not only for those of you that are going through something similar out there but I want to remember the mental anguish of this whole fiasco as well.
I guess, let’s start with the reasons why I’m so opposed to this “vaccine.”
The number one reason I’m hesitant is that it’s new technology. It has not been thoroughly vetted, it’s been out less than a year and the fact that the government is HELL BENT on MAKING people get it makes me suspicious. If you have to coerce, bribe, and threaten people to take this vaccine when the disease itself should be motivation enough to take the vaccine, something doesn’t add up.
For example, and this is just the latest example: Birmingham-Southern College is bragging because they have 78% of their students vaccinated. Want to know how they did it? By coercing them to comply. How, you ask? By making the unvaccinated get a weekly COVID test that costs $500 each time they get the test.
The small college doesn’t require the shots, but did charge all students a $500 fee for weekly COVID-testing. If students disclosed a COVID vaccination, they received a rebate.
The college goes on to say that they can’t “require” the students to get the vaccine but we thought if they are not getting the vaccine then the least they could do was absorb some of the cost when forced to take the test. And, you know, if it encourages students to get the shot, all the better!
And there’s Australia. That whole country has gone completely berserk in their response going so far as to put up quarantine facilities and making their citizens download an app that will track their movements. For you see, if you go outside five kilometers of your house, you could be in big trouble. So this app – they will call you at random times and if you don’t respond in 15 minutes and can prove you’re complying with their insane rules, they will arrest you. It’s absolutely insane. This reaction goes WAY beyond a disease that is basically a bad flu for most people. For a disease that has a 99.5% recovery rate for most people.
These are just two of MANY examples of crazy responses to this damn virus.
I’d even go so far as to hypothesize that the vaccinated are actually shedding the Delta variant -they’re certainly not immune to it as it’s been documented that many vaccinated have come down with the Delta variant. Even if that theory proves incorrect, it doesn’t take away from the fact that a large portion of people who have been vaccinated have been infected.
Again, WHY take an experimental injectable that doesn’t really protect you from variants?
And WHY haven’t we talked about natural immunity? Or alternative medications? Oh right, we can’t, because social media censors us every time we TRY and have a conversation about it.
My point is – there are A LOT of questions and very few answers. And even the answers that are given are sloppy and contradictory. All of this is enough for me to say, “Whoa cowboy. Let’s slow down and do some more research on this concoction you’re trying to inject into people.”
“But Karen, people are DYING.”
I get that. So inject the vulnerable and leave the healthy people alone. Do more research. Run the vaccine through it’s paces, like every other vaccine that’s ever been created and dispersed to the public. The FDA supposedly “approved” the Pfizer vaccine, but did they?
And if these issues weren’t enough, now you have frustrated doctors out there touting the unvaccinated shouldn’t receive medical treatment. Not only if they get COVID, but for any medical issue.
Again, these are just a SMALL number of examples that make me hesitant. There are many, many, MANY more out there if you bother to look for them and get off main stream media outlets. (Because they consistently lie about everything – here is just one example if you don’t believe me).
So. Until the “vaccine” has been fully vetted, until we have a conversation about natural immunity and it can be proven that natural immunity is not good enough to protect you against this disease and that you have no other choice but take the vaccine, or that alternative medications can be given in the early stages and heal people so that they don’t need a vaccine, I am fully, and 100% against it.
There are many more natural avenues we can explore before coming to the conclusion that it’s the vaccine or nothing else for me, personally.
Of course, you’re free to do whatever you want to do. If you feel like the vaccine is a good choice for you and your family, by all means, go for it. But people do NOT have the right to tell me what I can, or can not do, with my body. And if you feel otherwise, check yourself. Get off your high horse for a minute and stop being such an arrogant know-it-all. Doctors, government, my neighbors, hell, even my husband, does not have the right to tell me what to do when it comes to my health. Hence the reason so many people smoke, drink, do drugs, over eat – these people KNOW these things are bad for them but they choose to participate in these activities anyway. No one can tell them what to do. They can advise them, educate them on the negative effects of these activities, but ultimately, it’s their choice And they have no one to blame if their choices make them sick or unable to live a long, fulfilling life.
Is it sad? Of course. But people have free will and they are free to choose what kind of life they are going to live.
Just like me. I choose not to get the vaccine. So whatever consequences from that choice happens, it’s on me. No one else. And the same goes for the people who got the vaccine. Any consequences from that choice is no one’s fault but the person who chose that path.
Especially since the drug companies and the government force you to sign a consent exempting them from any responsibility if things go south.
Oh look, there’s yet another reason I’m vaccine hesitant. Go figure.
I could go on and on and on about my reasons for not getting the experimental injectable but I’m not going to – if you want more of my thoughts and reasons, just listen/watch to our Right From Us podcast.
I would prefer to turn my attention to how this topic is affecting me and my future.
July 7th, our competing hospital announced it was mandating the vaccine. That was the day everyone started getting nervous, speculating, gossiping, trying to figure out if our hospital was going to do the same. Rumors started flying and before long, our hospital was rumored to require the vaccine as soon as the FDA approved it. I was hoping that would be years because let’s face it, it typically takes that long to approve a vaccine. So, I was worried, but not overly much.
The CEO of our hospital was interviewed for quite a few shows, even Good Morning America and I knew from that point forward, when the FDA announced it was going to approved the vaccine, there was NO QUESTION my hospital would mandate it, how could they not? Our CEO went on national TV and pretty much committed to it. And he HAD to now or lose face. I knew that wasn’t going to happen.
In addition, he mentioned in an interview with one of our local TV stations that people who were vaccine hesitant were “less educated” than the people who just stuck out their arms and got the jab. This did not go well at the hospital and it pissed A LOT of people off. Myself included. In fact, I would argue that I was likely MORE educated than most of the sheeple that got the jab because I took the time to read anything and everything I could about the vaccine. In fact, I would argue that I read TOO much about it.
The CEO then had the nerve to tell people who DARED question “the science” to SHUT UP. Yeah, he tweeted that little gem. Needless to say, that also pissed a lot of people off. Myself included.
Now I’m thinking, why would I WANT to continue working for a hospital that thinks it’s people are stupid and who tells them to shut up if they DARE question anything to do with COVID injections. What an asshole. I was SO PISSED OFF at that man, I still man, truth be known, but someone finally gave him a bit of his own medicine and told him to shut up because I haven’t heard him say much since his verbal vomit.
And because I have a big mouth – what, I can own it and admit it – I pretty much advertised my VERY STRONG feelings about this experimental injectable and how there was no way in hell I was going to get it so that Dr. M. heard about it and staged an intervention for me. Thankfully, the nurse I work with gave me a head’s up and so I wasn’t totally surprised, but the timing of his intervention did take me by surprise. It happened the last clinic before he went on vacation and I assumed he had too many other things on his mind to think about little ole me.
Oh, how wrong I was.
I call it an intervention though it really wasn’t, but it sort of was.
I was eating lunch with our medical secretary when Dr. M., his mid-level (PA) and his nurse all walked into the room. And when he started off with, “Let’s chat,” I knew it wasn’t going to go very well. He had, (and has been), very cranky lately. He has a lot of personal things going on, along with an upcoming surgery he doesn’t want to have, along with starting a sporting organization for his children and other talented athletes and he’s just been super busy and super overwhelmed with everything right now.
I don’t even remember most of that conversation, to be honest. Because I was so annoyed with everyone ganging up on me and cornering me that all I wanted to do was get it over with. I know the intervention wasn’t intended to make me angry or make me feel bad, I understand that their hearts were in the right place and they just wanted to make sure I had all of the information about the vaccine, not just the “incorrect” information, as they called opposing views, so I took it with a grain of salt. It didn’t make it easier to endure, but I understood where they were coming from.
I didn’t fight back. I didn’t counter his “evidence.” And it wasn’t that I couldn’t counteract what he was saying but that I didn’t really want to. What’s the point? It would just make him, and everyone else in the room angry and considering I had no idea when the hospital would mandate the vaccine and I could potentially be working with these people for YEARS, I didn’t want to make it weird and awkward. So, I stayed largely quiet. The whole thing was terribly uncomfortable for me and whenever I’m embarrassed or put on the spot like that my go-to emotion is to get angry.
AND. I. WAS. PISSED. OFF.
So much so that I went for a long walk after everyone left so that I had time to cool off and weigh my options.
You have to understand – I don’t really have a dog in this fight. Meaning, I haven’t gone to school to be a medical assistant, I fell into the position and learned on the job as I went along, and working in the medical field wasn’t, and still isn’t, something I wanted to make my career. I applied at the hospital because I was afraid ObamaCare would make it impossible to get health insurance and since Kevin was self-employed and getting insurance going that route would be astronautically expensive, I got a job in medical so that my family would have insurance and I wouldn’t have to worry about it going away any time soon. I did it to protect my family. So, I can walk away at any time and be okay with that decision.
I enjoy what I do, I’m good at what I do, I enjoy the people I work with and honestly, those are the only reasons I’ve stayed. And it’s gotten easy for me and leaving and learning another job would be so much harder.
Dr. M. emailed me later that same day to say that he hadn’t meant to corner me, but that he cared about me and didn’t want to lose me and he gave me a link to some more information. Again, I appreciated the fact that he cared enough to do that, but there was, and is, really nothing he can say that will change my mind.
And I think I annoyed him because he’s a neurosurgeon and let’s face it, he’s not used to being told no.
After the email, I went for another walk, to do more thinking, and when the clinic closed for the day, I marched into my manager’s office, sat down, took a moment to compose myself and then said, “I can’t believe I’m going to say this ….”
And promptly lost my shit. I blubbered and cried and absolutely broke down in front of her. I never, NEVER do this sort of thing so I was super embarrassed and humiliated but to my manager’s credit, she said, “I think I know what you’re going to say, but don’t say it now. Go home, think about it, calm down and then we can talk.”
And that’s exactly what I did.
I HATE masks, but I was never so glad to be wearing one in that moment because I knew it was “masking” my ugly cry. Because it was an ugly cry.
Luckily, this all happened the day before my vacation was to start so I had some time to cool off, think and weigh my options. And I decided, at that time, that I was just going to take it day-by-day. Again, we had no idea when the hospital would mandate the vaccine and I was biding my time.
In the meantime, the hospital, in an attempt to coax and bribe the employees to get the vaccine, started some sort of lottery program where your name was entered to win cash and other prizes if you were vaccinated. At that time, 69% of employees were vaccinated. (That percentage was the same for nurses, too).
And from that point on, even today, we get daily emails about employees vaccination times, “sobering” statistics, daily reminders of how many COVID patients we have in the hospital. Overhead announcements when a COVID patient codes, “Code Blue, Code Blue, Team19, room so-and-so.” Stickers are handed out to put on your badge if you’re vaccinated …
It continues to be overwhelming and too much. My clinic has gotten to the point we just don’t talk about it and when we do, there are raised voices, eye rolls and “well, you’ve never taken a biology class, have you?”
How freaking insulting is that?? I’m probably one of the most educated people in that clinic – I graduated from college … I’m one of the oldest, and likely wisest, people in that damn place. Tell me I don’t know what the hell I’m talking about. *deep breath*
But still, I’m taking it one day at a time because I heard that some hospitals that mandated the vaccine reversed their decision because they were going to lose too many people and if you haven’t been paying attention, healthcare is pretty short handed now, let alone what it will look like if they lose a small percentage of people, so who knows if my hospital will change their mind.
And then, August 26th happens.
Write From Karen 