Originally Posted by
MaxD
Not even the pneumonia vaccine? It's good for 5 years. Also, a mask isn't enough - you're more likely to "catch" the virus on your hands and then transmit it near your nostril (a person touches his/her face a godawful number of times each day!).
Stay well!
To chime in on the flu season mask discussion:
I wear a mask on my daily commute (I live in a city and take public transportation--very crowded!) and I find that, although it's a little embarrassing, it helps in a lot of ways. One of which is what you mention: I can't touch my face during my commute and immediately before I take off my mask, I use hand sanitizer. I figure that being conscious of not touching my nose/mouth helps just as much as any effect the mask might have. And as another unintended side effect: people tend to keep their distance from me with the mask, which also reduces the risk someone will cough or sneeze near me.
As for the pneumonia vaccine: my doctor said I'm too immunosupressed to get one now and he doesn't want to risk it.
On his recommendation, I got a flu vaccine this year (for the first time ever) with no side effects.
"Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the whole earth revolves—slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment. Only this actual moment is life." -Thich Nhat Hanh
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