Flu Shots? thoughts

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Replies

  • MissKalhan
    MissKalhan Posts: 2,282 Member
    Never. My mom when she was my age nearly died from a rare disease caused by the flu shot, needless to say she didn't want to lose her babies.
  • SailorKnightWing
    SailorKnightWing Posts: 875 Member
    The one year I didn't get a flu shot (the year they were rationing them) I caught the flu twice, a stomach virus and strep throat within a month and a half span. It wrecked my body and permanently messed up my parasympathetic nervous system. I was bedridden for three months because my blood pressure dropped so low it couldn't hold my body upright. I'm still suffering the effects of it 8 years later.

    I will always get a flu shot as long as it is available to me.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    People who are immunocompromised shouldnt be running around with normal people in the first place. It is one of the precautions medical professionals tell them.

    Because people who are immunocompromised don't have bills to pay, especially medical bills.

    If they are immunocompromised, the flu is really the least of their worries.

    They are not supposed to be around normal people in crowded areas or be in too much contact, bottom line. You dont see chemo patients running around

    Yes, you DO see chemo patients running around! You just don't know it! Have you ever had chemo? Some regimens are 1 day on, 4 weeks off, 3 weeks off. People go on with their lives during chemo--work, go to school, etc. We need that medical insurance to pay for the chemo, because it ain't cheap. You don't sit holed up in your house 24/7. I worked, my best friend worked, a news anchor here in town worked during her chemo. We're not emaciated, pale, frail beings in a wheelchair--we look like everyone else, except when we're not wearing our wigs. In fact, since you get steroids with chemo, some of us actually GAIN weight.

    You are not supposed to run around when during nadir. Especially in crowded areas.

    I have had 2 family members that have had chemo. I pretty much was at the hospital every week over several eyars

    At nadir, you don't feel like running around. It's the rest of the time when you're trying to live a normal life that you're out and about.
  • MellowMe
    MellowMe Posts: 3
    I get the shot all of the time but oddly enough, I end up getting the flu almost every single time.
  • mom2sons02
    mom2sons02 Posts: 111 Member
    I have gotten a flu shot for the past six years and have gotten the flu two of those years. Not just throwing up, real, 7 days in bed with a fever flu. It is horrible. So I will get a flu shot this year as well. It is not 100%, but I would rather do what I can to stay healthy.
    My husband also gets one. My kids don't. I let them chose and if they get sick, they see consequences. They are teens, it is time to learn life lessons.
  • shawmutt
    shawmutt Posts: 74 Member
    *Disclaimer* I work for a major pharmaceutical firm that produces one of the major flu vaccines. I'm not speaking on their behalf and won't be mentioning the name of the company. Let's just say my kids enjoy the nasal vaccine a lot more than the shot ;-) That being said, I'm not a salesman or anything, just a grunt that actually makes the medicine on the production floor.

    My family gets one every year, free of charge, and earlier than most. My son deals with severe eczema and is often immune compromised, my wife is a school teacher, and I just have a crappy immune system. They all get me sick with something multiple times in a given year, and I'd rather not add the flu to that mix.

    For those on the fence, one thing to consider is herd immunity. Although you may not get very sick from the flu (or show symptoms at all), you may pass it on to someone like a grandparent or infant who cannot handle it well. The more people are vaccinated, the less likely an outbreak of the flu will affect a community. Consider the measles and mumps outbreaks we have been having lately. This is a direct result of the fear-mongering, "mommy sense", anti-vaccine crowd.

    If you're scared of the needle, just get the nasal spray.
  • akp4Him
    akp4Him Posts: 227
    The one time I got the flu shot...I spent the next two days with a horrible stomach ache. I have not had the flu shot since. I have not had the flu either.
    Also...if all of you who are worried about getting the flu...get the flu shot...what does it matter if some don't get the flu shot? You will be covered.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    my family gets the shot...kiddos get the nasal vaccine
  • hsnider29
    hsnider29 Posts: 394 Member
    I beleive that the flu shot is overused, much like antibiotics. Viruses are extremely adaptable and mutate and I think that the overuse of the vaccine is causing extremely virulent strains of the flu. Just like the superbugs we are seeing in relation to the overuse/misuse of antibiotics.

    i think the flu shot should be used as it was in years past for those that would likely suffer the most damaging or life threatening complications from the flu. I work in healthcare and it is becoming mandatory in that setting to prevent possible transmission to immunocompromised patients.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I have a special needs grandson with a comprimised immune system. Yes, we all get vaccinated.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
    People who are immunocompromised shouldnt be running around with normal people in the first place. It is one of the precautions medical professionals tell them.

    Because people who are immunocompromised don't have bills to pay, especially medical bills.

    If they are immunocompromised, the flu is really the least of their worries.

    They are not supposed to be around normal people in crowded areas or be in too much contact, bottom line. You dont see chemo patients running around

    That isn't true, as flu kills tens of thousands of people every year, and chemo patients aren't the only people who are immunocompromised. Anyone who has had an organ transplant, and a lot of people who have autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's, and lupus, are still able to work, and need to work, and need to be on their immune system suppressing medications, often full-time, in order to survive.
  • SkinnyMel78
    SkinnyMel78 Posts: 434 Member
    I have to get one since I work in a hospital, but I have gotten them for my kids every year. Never had any problems
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,783 Member
    Never gotta the flu shot, never had the flu. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
  • kimswisher
    kimswisher Posts: 32 Member
    I just got mine on friday. I've been getting a flu shot for years and I never have got the flu.
  • Athijade
    Athijade Posts: 3,300 Member
    Yes I do, though I have not had mine yet this year as I am undergoing allergy testing soon due to 2 reactions to SOMETHING that put me in the hospital. So we are playing it safe until after the testing.

    There are people who can not get the flu shot due to allergies or compromised immune systems. By getting the flu shot, you are not only helping yourself but you are also helping those who can't get it.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
    I rarely got the flu so was skipping it but hubby convinced me I owe it to the people around me. So, get the flu shot for your granny or your kid, or your immuno-supressed friends. Then you won't get sick and bring the flu to them.
  • bethvandenberg
    bethvandenberg Posts: 1,496 Member
    Got mine a week ago :) I get them every year. Last year however, I got the flu 3x grrr
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    I beleive that the flu shot is overused, much like antibiotics. Viruses are extremely adaptable and mutate and I think that the overuse of the vaccine is causing extremely virulent strains of the flu. Just like the superbugs we are seeing in relation to the overuse/misuse of antibiotics.

    i think the flu shot should be used as it was in years past for those that would likely suffer the most damaging or life threatening complications from the flu. I work in healthcare and it is becoming mandatory in that setting to prevent possible transmission to immunocompromised patients.

    Doesn't work like that with vaccines.
  • sobriquet84
    sobriquet84 Posts: 607 Member
    i have to get one because i work in healthcare. the flu SUCKS, i would recommend getting the shot, especially if you're a high risk person or at high risk of having severe complications should you contract it.
  • hsnider29
    hsnider29 Posts: 394 Member
    I beleive that the flu shot is overused, much like antibiotics. Viruses are extremely adaptable and mutate and I think that the overuse of the vaccine is causing extremely virulent strains of the flu. Just like the superbugs we are seeing in relation to the overuse/misuse of antibiotics.

    i think the flu shot should be used as it was in years past for those that would likely suffer the most damaging or life threatening complications from the flu. I work in healthcare and it is becoming mandatory in that setting to prevent possible transmission to immunocompromised patients.

    Doesn't work like that with vaccines.

    The response isn't the same but viruses will mutate in response to barriers to their transmission. They need a host to proliferate. I am not anti-vaccine at all. The flu vaccine has about a 60% success rate per the CDC and that is for the strains that are included in the vaccine. I don't think it is a bad idea but not extremely effective for the general population.
  • coolraul07
    coolraul07 Posts: 1,606 Member
    I get one every year unless I forget. My current job and previous jobs going back to 1998 offer them onsite and for free. No complications, not even a runny nose. I don't even remember the last time I had the flu... probably not since the 20th century.:wink:

    Now that Jenny McCarthy's on 'The View', I wonder how often the topic of vaccines will show up.
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  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
    I beleive that the flu shot is overused, much like antibiotics. Viruses are extremely adaptable and mutate and I think that the overuse of the vaccine is causing extremely virulent strains of the flu. Just like the superbugs we are seeing in relation to the overuse/misuse of antibiotics.

    i think the flu shot should be used as it was in years past for those that would likely suffer the most damaging or life threatening complications from the flu. I work in healthcare and it is becoming mandatory in that setting to prevent possible transmission to immunocompromised patients.

    Doesn't work like that with vaccines.

    The response isn't the same but viruses will mutate in response to barriers to their transmission. They need a host to proliferate. I am not anti-vaccine at all. The flu vaccine has about a 60% success rate per the CDC and that is for the strains that are included in the vaccine. I don't think it is a bad idea but not extremely effective for the general population.

    The way it works with vaccines is that the more people who get vaccinated, the better it works, for everyone. It's called "herd immunity." If the virus doesn't have enough sensitive targets to spread, then no one catches the virus.
  • passwar
    passwar Posts: 8 Member
    Sometimes the flu is the closest I get to a vacation.
  • dmpizza
    dmpizza Posts: 3,321 Member
    GET FLU SHOTS.

    A few years ago we lost a relative that avoided flu shots.

    It doesn't pay to live in the 21st century if you don't take advantage of it.
  • wjniii
    wjniii Posts: 110 Member
    Yes. My wife is a grammer school teacher and exposed to all kinds of stuff so we have gotten them for years. We rarely get the flu and, when we do, it is a mild case. We have never had an adverse reaction and we will get them again this year.
  • KatrinaWilke
    KatrinaWilke Posts: 372 Member
    I have never had the flu. I never got a flu shot until the whole H1N1 scare. Now I get one every year......still have never had the flu. But the shot is free for me so I might as well get it....
  • chezjuan
    chezjuan Posts: 747 Member
    I never used to get them, but then I had a kid. Since she spends time with other children, and occasionally brings home some nasties, both she and I get them now. Even though it's not guaranteed that it will prevent the flu, it doesn't hurt to tip the scales a little in favor of avoiding it.

    Not sure if I have ever had the flu - never gotten sick enough to be tested for influenza. My sister did get H1N1 (confirmed by a test) when it was around and was in rough shape for a week.
  • NataBost
    NataBost Posts: 418 Member
    I seem to be prone to sinus infections and the like, so my doctor suggested that I get it. I got it last year, and no major issues. I'd rather take time off for vacation, not because I'm trying to cosplay Pestilence from "Supernatural" :laugh:
  • highervibes
    highervibes Posts: 2,219 Member
    No flu shots for our family.

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