A new study found that the COVID-19 vaccine can result in benefits that go beyond simply protecting people from the virus.

There are plenty of health benefits associated with the COVID-19 vaccine, primarily the fact that it helps keep you safe and alive during a global pandemic. But, aside from that, a new study suggests that one big benefit the COVID-19 vaccine can lead to is an improvement in your mental health.

Published in the journal PLOS One, researchers tracked people who received their first COVID-19 shot between the months of December 2020 and March 2021. People who had received a shot were less likely to be depressed when compared to people who hadn’t been vaccinated or had scheduled a vaccination appointment but had yet to get the jab.

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Another interesting bit of data indicates that mental health benefits were reported without having full inoculation. “Getting the first dose of COVID-19 resulted in significant improvements in mental health, beyond improvements already achieved since mental distress peaked in the spring of 2020,” concluded the study.

While the study didn’t look into why this was occurring, it makes total sense that people would be feeling better following the vaccine and the year we’ve all been through. The mental health impacts of the pandemic have long worried researchers and experts, believing that a year of fear, isolation, and economic stress is likely to result in deteriorated mental health and increased odds of substance abuse.

People who are vaccinated have less to worry about, with fewer odds of getting infected. They can go out and meet other people without the fear that surrounded these engagements before the existence of the vaccine.

The benefits reported by researchers are likely short-term, meaning that, if the pandemic continues indefinitely and people get used to having their vaccines and adapting to their new lifestyles, they’ll likely fade away. Still, it’s encouraging to see these results, which indicate that the benefits of the vaccine go beyond just physical health.

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The vaccine gives people a lot of hope and the possibility to get back to a sort of normal, where they can ride the bus or the subway, go to work and hang out with their friends and family without exposing themselves or others to too much risk.