I ’m Vaccinated, Boosted and Had COVID-19. Can I Go Back to Normal Now?

Welcome to COVID Questions, TIME’s advice column. We’re trying to make living through the pandemic a little easier, with expert-backed answers to your toughest coronavirus-related dilemmas. While we can’t and don’t offer medical advice—those questions should go to your doctor—we hope this column will help you sort through this stressful and confusing time. Got a question? Write to us at covidquestions@time.com. Today, A.B. asks: “I’m fully vaccinated, boosted and have recently recovered from a breakthrough infection. Can I go back to normal now?” There are certain pathogens that the human immune system learns to block forever after a single encounter. But others, like coronaviruses that cause the common cold, can sicken a person year after year. Unfortunately, the virus that causes COVID-19 is, like other coronaviruses, able to infect the same person multiple times. The body gets better at fighting it after each exposure or vaccine dose, meaning future brushes with the virus will likely be milder, but there doesn’t seem to be a point at which the risk of infection completely disappears. “There’s probably always a level of exposure to the virus that could overcome the level of immunity you have,” says Dr. Rachel Presti, an infectious disease researcher at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. That’s especially true if you’re elderly, have underlying medical condition...
Source: TIME: Health - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized COVID Questions COVID-19 healthscienceclimate Source Type: news