And I thought vegetables were gross
Does tolerance for side effects correlate with fear, and what else does fear correlate with?
“I actually strained my neck because the gag response was so strong.”
“I probably have no tooth enamel left, but (nibbling on pineapple every 15min) was the only thing that saved my sanity.”
“It was like the smell that hot garbage has, but in your mouth.”
“It tastes like your mouth is just clenched around a grapefruit rind.”
These are all real-life descriptions of people’s prescription-long experiences while taking Pfizer’s new drug Paxlovid in an effort to reduce disease severity from a case of Covid. A Pfizer-funded study suggests this type of experience happens in about 5% of people who take the drug, meaning it is at least that frequent. While this side effect certainly sounds miserable, with sales far exceeding forecasts, it’s clear people either don’t mind the risk for this or other potential side effects, or they don’t know about them.
Is there any other explanation for the willingness we see on the part of doctors to prescribe this drug, and for people to take it in spite of these very real concerns? A simpler one may be worthy of consideration:
FEAR.
Looking back over the prior 2+ years, it’s not difficult to see the powerful influence fear has had on the choices and behaviors of the average person. To make a long and winding story very short, it has clearly contributed to some horrendous things that most could not have imagined before they actually happened, and that many readily accepted as ‘necessary’ when they never would have before. There is little else that could explain these things.
In many different circumstances, the primary driver allowing for fear to seep in and influence someone so powerfully is feeling a lack of control over the outcome of a potentially dangerous situation. In fact, this effect is so strong, it can create an addiction to control as powerful as any drug.
So what then is the real remedy here?
Perhaps instead of being willing to tolerate a horrendous taste, or a loved one dying alone, or an otherwise healthy, very low risk child’s heart becoming unnecessarily inflamed, or much, much worse, people need to develop more of a tolerance to fear.
In other words, people can tolerate at least some of the fear they feel, and in turn reduce the likelihood of making regrettable decisions in the face of it, by realizing they actually do have control.
The simple fact is this- A human body is endowed with an almost unimaginable capacity for health and healing, constantly at work and often successful for much longer than it should be, despite facing seemingly insurmountable odds. A brief look around will reveal evidence for this fact everywhere, as so many people remain at least somewhat functional in their day to day lives despite providing their bodies (and minds) almost none of the proper forms of nourishment they require to thrive.
The biggest tragedy of all during these last 2+ years may very well be a lost opportunity to educate the masses on what their bodies are capable of and how best to take advantage of this, when literally almost all the eyes and ears of humanity were looking and listening more intently than ever before. Had things been done this way, no doubt a lot less money would have been made, but perhaps a lot fewer people would have died of covid, and/or one of many other preventable chronic illnesses later in life. There would still be side effects of course. More sleep means less scrolling. More movement means less lounging. And don’t forget those icky vegetables.