As the vaccine rollout has begun across the country, it can be challenging to know when it will be your time to receive one.
While millions receive their dose, vaccine selfies and pictures of vaccine cards show a different side of the COVID-19 pandemic - a sense of hope.
If you’re in one of the last groups or seeing friends and family getting their vaccine, experts say you may experience a new feeling called "vaccine envy," reports Today.
Dr. Jessica Stern, a clinical psychologist at NYU Langone Health, said vaccine envy is similar to jealousy. While experiencing vaccine envy, the person may feel anxious because of something they want, but they can’t have just yet.
“I think for a lot of people, the vaccine is a concrete representation of hope, or a mechanism for people to start to feel more capable in moving forward in this pandemic,” Stern said. “A lot of people are really hoping that this is going to be the opportunity that will allow them to start to reengage in their life.”
What causes vaccine envy?
Dr. Lauren Cook, a therapist based in Los Angeles, said that this is caused when people feel that they lack control.
“Really, this whole year with the pandemic there’s been just an absolute lack of control ... and so it’s like, ‘Oh, we’re almost there at the end of this road,’ and so many of us have to be patient for a little bit longer,” Cook said. “I think it feels very frustrating for people, they feel like they can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but they’re still trapped in the tunnel as they’re seeing other people get out of the tunnel. I think that’s really hard for people to sit with.”
Cook also explained how the rollout could cause people across the nation to feel anxious. Another feeling you can experience is jealousy.
Throughout the country, we have seen people skip the line and get their vaccine early while paying more or lying about their health condition.
“That’s so invalidating, especially when people have been really patient in the process and feel like they’ve been respectful of their neighbors,” Cook said. “That feels really unfair to people, naturally.”
Cook said people should start by “letting go of control” and try to accept the “reality of the situation.”
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