With these three words, I join a growing echelon of the world’s population who are willing to be injected with bioengineered technology in humanity’s fight against SARS-CoV-2.
I received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, comprised of a modified adenovirus and other genetic code to tell my body to stimulate an immune response if I get infected with the virus. The behind-the-scenes science is amazing.
Clinical trials indicate that two weeks after J&J vaccination, I am protected against moderate to severe disease; and four weeks provide 100% protection against hospitalization and death. In other words, I’ll be relatively okay if I get infected.
Vaccine side effects are more common in people ages 18 to 59. That’s my group. The first 24 hours included a series of restlessness, body chills, low-grade fever, and severe headaches. The next 48 hours brought on muscular aches and mild pain at the injection site. After 72 hours, I was fine.
Here’s a picture of my first post-vaccine selfie.