Emotional Reaction to the First Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine: Postvaccination Decline in Anxiety and Stress among Anxious Individuals and Increase among Individuals with Normal Prevaccination Anxiety Levels

Although vaccination has been adopted by the WHO to limit worldwide transmission of COVID-19, people's worries about COVID-19 vaccines may suppress their desire for vaccination despite vaccine availability. This study aimed to investigate anxiety and stress symptoms among 250 Jordanians (mean age = 43.18 ± 6.34 years, 72% females) who received their first vaccine dose. The respondents completed the anxiety and stress subscales of the Depression Anxiety and Stress scale 21 (DASS-21) before and after vaccination. The respondents expressed more moderate-severe levels of stress before than after vaccination (20.8% and 13.2%, respectively). Meanwhile, 37.2% and 45.2% of the respondents expressed moderate-severe anxiety before and after vaccination, respectively. Wilcoxon signed-rank test revealed that the drop in the level of stress from before- (median (IQR) = 5 (1-8)) to after vaccination (median (IQR) = 3 (1-7)) was statistically significant (z = -3.81, p = 0.001, r = 0.17) while the increase in anxiety was not. Anxiety significantly dropped postvaccination among individuals experiencing mild to severe anxiety before vaccination. Similarly, stress and anxiety significantly increased among individuals expressing normal anxiety before vaccination (z = -3.57 and -8.24, p values = 0.001, r = 0.16 and 0.37, respectively). Age positively correlated with postvaccination anxiety among respondents with mild prevaccination anxiety, and it negatively correlated with the prevaccination level of stress in the normal-anxiety group. Gender, marital status, respondents' level of education, and history of COVID-19 infection had no significant correlation with anxiety or stress at either point of measurement. Overcoming their hesitancy to receive COVID-19 vaccines, individuals with normal levels of anxiety experienced a rise in their distress symptoms following immunization. On the contrary, vaccination seemed to desensitize anxious individuals. Policymakers need to formulate a population-specific plan to increase vaccine preparedness and promote psychological well-being over all during the pandemic.