Image: Representational image
So, I decided to get the Monkeypox (MPXV) vaccine.
Why, you ask?
I wish I could say it was mainly because I wanted to do my part and look out for the community. Yes, that was part of it, but the main reason I chose to get jabbed was the symptoms.
MPXV symptoms can include a rash, painful skin lesions or sores on the face, mouth, genitals, and anus. This is usually accompanied by fever, headache, fatigue and swollen lymph nodes.
Painful lesions on my genitals and anus?
Listen, if there’s a vaccine that protects me from painful lesions and sores below the waist, or anywhere else on my body, jab my brains out.
JYNNEOS Vaccine Available In Australia
According to ACON, MPXV is transmitted through close physical contact as well as contact with the clothing of with someone who has symptoms.
MPXV can also be transmitted if you breathe in the respiratory droplets of an infected person.
Australia has received a supply of the third-generation JYNNEOS vaccine. In order to be fully vaccinated, you must get two doses of the vaccine, spaced at least 28 days apart.
Currently, the vaccine is being administered intradermally. This means it is given via a shallow injection into the forearm.
Get Jabbed, With Pride
According to Australia’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Michael Kidd, “The advantage of the intradermal route is that you can provide vaccination to four or five people with the same dose that was used previously via the subcutaneous route to get to one person.” In other words, this method allows clinics to squeeze four to five doses from a single standard dose, which allows a significantly larger number of people to get protected.
Between May 20 and October 13, 2022, there were 140 MPXV cases in Australia, including 69 in Victoria, 54 in New South Wales, 7 in Western Australia, 5 in Queensland, 3 in the Australian Capital Territory, and 2 in South Australia.
Sure, lining up with other gay and bisexual men to get a vaccine that temporarily leaves a small raised bump at the injection site feels a bit like a scarlet letter. But wear that scarlet letter with pride.
If anything, think of all the grateful genitals.
