Getting the Covid vaccine may boost your mental health, new study suggests

Over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, researchers have been tracking a surge in mental distress and illness, including anxiety and depression. 

Many South Africans experienced psychological distress during the country's lockdown - and a paper published in the South African Journal of Psychology highlights that "resources and energy have been concentrated on the biomedical aspect of the [Covid] virus, with relative disregard for the mental health impact of the virus".

However, a new US study brings a glimmer of hope: Investigating the link between receiving a Covid vaccine shot and mental health, researchers found that participants experienced significant short-term improvements in their mental health after receiving their first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines.