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Hi, I have a question about COVID-19 immunity. So, I am a 18 y.o. male without any pathology or problem of any specific kind and I have completed the entire vaccine cycle (I've got the booster on the 2nd of January). Before and after the jabs I had never had covid. However, at the end of July i tested positive and got a light nose congestion that was gone after few days so I was pretty much asymptomatic and i tested negative after 7 days (however i'm pretty sure that i was negative at least 5 days after the positive test). My question is: how much am i protected? I mean, how long will my immunity last? Can i get re-infected easily? Can i live my social life without caring about masks as much as i did before? (before getting covid i had never had contact with people outside my family without wearing a mask). Thanks.
The COVID vaccines were largely designed to reduce moderate to severe disease. So, experiencing a mild illness in July does not represent a “failure” of the vaccine. The vaccine is not designed to protect you from mild disease or from being able to infect another person (transmission). Data suggests that protection wanes over time and thus booster doses are important, especially to maintain the protection of the most vulnerable parts of the population. Re-infection may occur rather easily and we have data that shows that a person can get re-infected within 21 days of a prior infection (i.e., infection and re-infection within 21 days). Masks, ventilation, and social distancing will continue to be important especially for protecting the most vulnerable parts of the population.
Your age and health status suggests that you are personally at low risk and can be unmasked, if wanted. But if you come in contact with older persons, persons with underlying medical conditions, etc. then you could be a risk to those other people.
