Did you get a flu shot this year?

[kenny]

Did you get a flu shot this year?

 

[Missy]

Yes, I am a health care worker so it would be remiss of me not to for the safety of my patients as well as my health. I had the flu one year about 8 years ago and it was pure misery. Not saying you cannot get the flu once you get the flu shot but hopefully it helps your chances of remaining flu free.

 

[Laila619]

No, I've never gotten a flu shot.

 

[sonnyjane]

Yes. I had absolutely no intention of getting one as I never had before and don't really get the flu, but my doctor gave me a guilt trip and told me that by not getting one I could "kill children and elderly people"... Didn't have a good rebuttal for that so I just let her give it to me.

 

[aviastar]

No, I've never had the flu, even when I have been exposed. My mom has to get it (she's a nurse) and she conistently gets sick the week after getting it. So, it's anectdotal and somewhat superstitious, but there ya go.

 

[kenny]

Yes. I had absolutely no intention of getting one as I never had before and don't really get the flu, but my doctor gave me a guilt trip and told me that by not getting one I could "kill children and elderly people"... Didn't have a good rebuttal for that so I just let her give it to me.

Funny, I got a new doctor this year and he convinced me to get my first flu shot for the same reasons - public health.

The flu shot protects you from only what the gov-mint believes are the three most likely or most problematic flu viruses.
It does not protect you from others.

Some locations in America offer free flu shots, call your local health department.

 

[Haven]

I recently got a flu shot for the first time in over a decade, and only because I'm pregnant and my doctor was adamant that I get one. The last time I got one I became very, very ill with the flu the day after the shot. I have no idea if it was FROM the shot, or if I just happened to have been exposed to the flu right around then, but it put me off the shot for a long time.

I rarely get sick, and I think that was the last time I had the flu. I have had a terrible head cold since Thursday, and this is the first time I can remember being sick with something like this since college. No fun!

 

[kenny]

I suspect it takes longer than one day from exposure to flu symptoms.

 

[Missy]

I recently got a flu shot for the first time in over a decade, and only because I'm pregnant and my doctor was adamant that I get one. The last time I got one I became very, very ill with the flu the day after the shot. I have no idea if it was FROM the shot, or if I just happened to have been exposed to the flu right around then, but it put me off the shot for a long time.

I rarely get sick, and I think that was the last time I had the flu. I have had a terrible head cold since Thursday, and this is the first time I can remember being sick with something like this since college. No fun!

You can definitely get a reaction from the flu shot but that is not the same thing as the flu. I'm glad you got the shot Haven- it is critical for your unborn child. A new study just came out from the Journal of Pediatrics showed that mothers who had the flu during pregnancy have a higher risk of having a child with autism.

I suspect it takes longer than one day from exposure to flu symptoms.

Definitely and it takes 2 weeks for the flu shot to produce full immunity from the flu strains you received in that shot. In other words, 2 weeks for it to fully work.

 

[rainwood]

I never got a flu shot until one year it was recommended about 12 years ago because my husband was going through chemotherapy. A month or so later, the flu swept through my end of the floor at work. Everyone, and I mean everyone, got sick but me. I also happened to be the only one who got a flu shot. I've been a believer ever since.

I've never gotten sick or a reaction from it except mild itching at the injection site once. I don't anyone who has gotten sick from it, and almost everyone at work gets one these days.

 

[CharmedOne]

Yep, every year for me and my two boy. DH has never had one and Of course he NEVER gets sick. Go figure!

 

[kenny]

A new study just came out from the Journal of Pediatrics showed that mothers who had the flu during pregnancy have a higher risk of having a child with autism.

missy, did you mean to write, have a LOWER risk?

 

[Missy]

A new study just came out from the Journal of Pediatrics showed that mothers who had the flu during pregnancy have a higher risk of having a child with autism.

missy, did you mean to write, have a LOWER risk?

No. If you have the flu during pregnancy you have a higher risk of having a child with autism.
So someone who is pregnant should get the shot to lower the risk of getting the flu.

 

[kenny]

Opps sorry.
I get it now.

 

[Missy]

Opps sorry.
I get it now.

No problem. It was an upsetting finding to be sure. And you cannot draw a direct correlation of the flu causing the autism but those are the results. The scientists just don't know exactly why that is.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I've read some articles that really question whether the flu shots are all that effective. I got them for a few years when I was teaching and exposed to many things, but after reading the information, I am opting out.

 

[davi_el_mejor]

yes... unfortunately

Work forces me to get one every year.

 

[packrat]

Yes, flu mist for the four of us. I've gotten the achy flu like three times since '98. I'd rather get the achy flu than the vomit flu-wish they'd come up w/an immunization for THAT.

 

[Skippy123]

I got one and my twins got one.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Yes. I have to with my job otherwise I have to wear a surgical mask during flu season. That would not really work with my position so I went with the flu shot. I thought it was better than last year's shot (in terms of arm soreness).

 

[justginger]

I'm with missy - it is inappropriate for me to not have the flu shot. The only time I didn't get one was a year I was already ill and wasn't back to normal before the immunization program ended. I have direct patient contact, and handle their specimens constantly. I am a big believer in the flu shot - any illness you feel afterwards is a direct effect of your immune system amount up and forming antibodies to what you've just received. A good thing, far better than the real deal.

 

[amc80]

I've never gotten the flu. I got the flu shot last year for the first time ever because I was planning on getting pregnant. I got one this year at the recommendation of my son's pediatrician since he's too young to get one.

 

[Dancing Fire]

No, I've never had the flu, even when I have been exposed. My mom has to get it (she's a nurse) and she conistently gets sick the week after getting it. So, it's anectdotal and somewhat superstitious, but there ya go.

that's the reason why i will never take a flu shot.haven't caught the flu in 25 yrs...

 

[JewelFreak]

I haven't had flu in at least 10 years, so no. Never have had a flu shot. I'm thinking about a shingles vaccine, though, because I had chicken pox as a kid & shingles ain't no fun from what I read.

 

[soocool]

Get one every year.

 

[Haven]

I haven't had flu in at least 10 years, so no. Never have had a flu shot. I'm thinking about a shingles vaccine, though, because I had chicken pox as a kid & shingles ain't no fun from what I read.

Oh, it's terrible. My father has shingles. If there's a vaccine, get it!

 

[lyra]

We get the flu shot every year. It is free, and it does help. Actually, I just got my shot today.

There's new evidence that it also protects your heart. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121028141719.htm

 

[rosetta]

Yes of course. My patients are immunocompromised. I got my shot at work, but had to stay off work the next day as I had a really sore arm and fever. It was no biggie and Ill be getting one next year too.

 

[erinl]

There have also been studies linking flu shots themselves given to pregnant women to a higher risk of autism in their unborn.

 

[canuk-gal]

I haven't had flu in at least 10 years, so no. Never have had a flu shot. I'm thinking about a shingles vaccine, though, because I had chicken pox as a kid & shingles ain't no fun from what I read.

Oh, it's terrible. My father has shingles. If there's a vaccine, get it!

Get it. Please.

I had shingles this year (face), and I would not wish that plague on anyone.

P.S. Count me on on the flu shot. No issue whatsoever.

cheers--Sharon