Vaccine rollout comes with a dose of guilt and envy

But after that initial reaction, he acknowledged that those lucky vaccine hunters were “in the right place at the right time” and it wasn’t healthy for him to harbor that envious feeling.

“You don’t want to carry it inside of you because it just grows,” Rosenberg says. “Some people are just in the right place at the right time. You need to accept that and go on.” Sarah C.

Hull, M.D., an associate director of the program for biomedical ethics at the Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut, agrees, noting that guilt often comes from

concerns about equity. But she says guilt isn’t always warranted. “As long as [people] are being honest and working within whatever system is implemented ... they shouldn’t feel guilty,”

Hull says. “On the contrary, they’re stepping up and getting vaccinated, which is essential to getting this pandemic under control.” It’s hard not to be envious of people who have scored a

coveted vaccine appointment or have “lucked” into getting a shot that would have otherwise been discarded. Linda Lou, 66, of New York City, said that despite multiple health conditions that

make her 64-year-old husband vulnerable to the virus, their efforts to get him a vaccination appointment has been a challenge. Lou is envious of those who receive the vaccine but strives to

replace those feelings with happiness at her friends’ good fortune. Still, a fair bit of frustration flares when friends brag about how easy it was to make an appointment, although they know

she and her husband have struggled to do so despite repeated attempts. “I find that although I am glad that they got it, my perception of them has changed a bit,” she says. “Not only did

they not call to let us know where there was availability, but they also don’t realize how it makes us feel left out and a bit like ‘losers,’ as we are still in maximum danger of a deadly

virus.” Rosenberg says that while it may be natural for emotions to bubble up, it’s important not to fixate on them. “Envy is a natural instinct, but it’s not a positive feeling,” Rosenberg

says. “If you ruminate on it, you just create more. It builds up and that is negative. The best thing to do is let it go, try to live in the moment.” _Nancy Dunham is a contributing writer

who covers automotive issues, home improvement and healthcare. Previously she served as a reporter and editor for several daily metropolitan newspapers. Her work has also appeared in _People

Magazine_, _The Washington Post, USA Today and U.S. News & World Report_._