Just got my flu shot for the year.

[oc_in_fw]

+1

[On Soapbox]
Just a couple quick reminders, debunkings, rants, etc.
1. Unless you have an ALLERGIC REACTION to the shot, you CANNOT - repeat - CANNOT, get sick from the flu shot. Unfortunately, there are many other respiratory illnesses going around at the same time, and every time someone gets one of these +/- 1 month of getting the flu shot, they blame the shot...
2. Unfortunately, you CAN still get the flu if you get the flu shot. There are dozens or even scores of strains of flu. To get the production ramped up in time for peak season, the final decisions on what to put in the shot have to be made in the late spring. Sometimes the researchers get it spot on, sometimes not so much. If you do get the flu shot and then catch a strain that isn't covered, there is still a good chance that your body will have some immunity and you won't get as sick as you would have.
3. Very unfortunately, we all refer to viral gastroenteritis as "the stomach flu." This viral illness is entirely unrelated to influenza (aka "the flu"), which is a respiratory illness that sometimes also causes nausea and vomiting. This is another "failure" that the vaccine gets blamed for.
4. It was my understanding that Thimerisal (the mercury-containing preservative) was going away because of public hysteria (not because of data). I cannot say for sure if it did (the above poster felt that 1/3 of shots still contained it). We all have to make our own decisions about exposures. I can say that if you've ever eaten a fish, you probably got more mercury from that exposure than the flu shot. What taking Thimerisal out of vaccines did accomplish was to require them to be packaged in single-dose vials, which resulted in a huge cost increase to an industry that is already basically performing this service to the public gratis.

As in all things medical, you need to make your own decisions for your own health and body after speaking to your own physician and getting your questions answered to your satisfaction. Please just don't make your decision based on faulty information.

[/On Soapbox]

and never take medical advice from a playboy bunny.

 

[Prof. Moriarty]

Get mine free every year due to medical reasons.

 

[techblade01]

Never got the shot, Never got the flu.

Not going to start now.

I got the shot, Got the flu.

Not going to get it now.

 

[jamesspo]

I got the shot, Got the flu.

Not going to get it now.

Nothing at all wrong with that, but just know that the flu shot didn't *give* you the flu. It's not possible. You may have had one of the hundreds of other flu viruses not covered by that particular year's cocktail. You may have been insufficiently protected, and gotten one of the viruses that the flu shot protected against in that year. But the flu shot itself did not give you the flu. I would venture to say that it's very difficult to know if you had "flu". You were ill, but unless you were given testing to see what virus you had (which would be very unlikely even if you want to a doctor), it's tough to say what you had.

The purpose of the flu shot is to enhance your immunity for a collection of flu virus' that are likely to be the most important, and prevalent, in the coming flu season. It won't prevent all flu viruses, and it won't prevent any of the common cold viruses (often mistaken for flu). It's there to provide a relatively broad net of protection and it does that very well in the aggregate. The shot has almost no side effects in people that aren't allergic to eggs. You might have a few very mild flu-like symptoms because of your immune systems's response to the de-activated virus. That's your immune system doing its job, and learning. To me, that's well worth my time to potentially avoid several days of downtime if you get a bad flu case.

 

[scorpionking]

We have a health expo at work (usually in October) and I'll get mine then.

Same for my company. They offer it in October and for free. Haven't gotten the flu in more years than I can count. Plus I have a 9 year old and an 18 month old baby. Can't let them catch the flu from me because I refused a free inoculation. I'm afraid I would lose sleep in more ways than one if that happened.
:

IMHO, thematthatter is correct about the "cocktail" of this year's version of the shot. If you take the shot and still get the flu, you picked up a strain not in this year's mix.

 

[techblade01]

Nothing at all wrong with that, but just know that the flu shot didn't *give* you the flu. It's not possible. You may have had one of the hundreds of other flu viruses not covered by that particular year's cocktail. You may have been insufficiently protected, and gotten one of the viruses that the flu shot protected against in that year. But the flu shot itself did not give you the flu. I would venture to say that it's very difficult to know if you had "flu". You were ill, but unless you were given testing to see what virus you had (which would be very unlikely even if you want to a doctor), it's tough to say what you had.

The purpose of the flu shot is to enhance your immunity for a collection of flu virus' that are likely to be the most important, and prevalent, in the coming flu season. It won't prevent all flu viruses, and it won't prevent any of the common cold viruses (often mistaken for flu). It's there to provide a relatively broad net of protection and it does that very well in the aggregate. The shot has almost no side effects in people that aren't allergic to eggs. You might have a few very mild flu-like symptoms because of your immune systems's response to the de-activated virus. That's your immune system doing its job, and learning. To me, that's well worth my time to potentially avoid several days of downtime if you get a bad flu case.

I get a reaction to it.

 

[jamesspo]

I get a reaction to it.

That's totally normal, and expected, just as it says on the warning pamphlet you were probably asked to read when you got the shot. Some of the symptoms of the flu are caused by your own immune system going into overdrive to fight the infection. The vaccine produces a scaled down version of that fight. If you have an serious allergic type reaction to it, certainly you should see your doctor to find our why. But minor, and short term, flu-like symptoms are normal.

Flu vaccines work by injecting you with a de-activated version of the target virus. Those virus are not able to replicate, but still look (on their surfaces) like the original virus. Your immune system sees these virus, and in time, starts to produce antibodies against the virus which allows you to target the virus and destroy it when you come into contact with the real thing. This same process occurs when you come into contact with the real virus, but the real virus is able to replicate while your body learns how to fight it, thus leading to protracted illness (or worse). With the real thing you get additional symptoms as the virus hijacks your cells to replicate (viruses need help from the host to replicate), usually leading to death of the cell, and thus damage that needs to be repaired.

 

[techblade01]

That's totally normal, and expected, just as it says on the warning pamphlet you were probably asked to read when you got the shot. Some of the symptoms of the flu are caused by your own immune system going into overdrive to fight the infection. The vaccine produces a scaled down version of that fight. If you have an serious allergic type reaction to it, certainly you should see your doctor to find our why. But minor, and short term, flu-like symptoms are normal.

Flu vaccines work by injecting you with a de-activated version of the target virus. Those virus are not able to replicate, but still look (on their surfaces) like the original virus. Your immune system sees these virus, and in time, starts to produce antibodies against the virus which allows you to target the virus and destroy it when you come into contact with the real thing. This same process occurs when you come into contact with the real virus, but the real virus is able to replicate while your body learns how to fight it, thus leading to protracted illness (or worse). With the real thing you get additional symptoms as the virus hijacks your cells to replicate (viruses need help from the host to replicate), usually leading to death of the cell, and thus damage that needs to be repaired.

Thanks.

 

[Haggises]

+1

[On Soapbox]
Just a couple quick reminders, debunkings, rants, etc.
1. Unless you have an ALLERGIC REACTION to the shot, you CANNOT - repeat - CANNOT, get sick from the flu shot. Unfortunately, there are many other respiratory illnesses going around at the same time, and every time someone gets one of these +/- 1 month of getting the flu shot, they blame the shot...
2. Unfortunately, you CAN still get the flu if you get the flu shot. There are dozens or even scores of strains of flu. To get the production ramped up in time for peak season, the final decisions on what to put in the shot have to be made in the late spring. Sometimes the researchers get it spot on, sometimes not so much. If you do get the flu shot and then catch a strain that isn't covered, there is still a good chance that your body will have some immunity and you won't get as sick as you would have.
3. Very unfortunately, we all refer to viral gastroenteritis as "the stomach flu." This viral illness is entirely unrelated to influenza (aka "the flu"), which is a respiratory illness that sometimes also causes nausea and vomiting. This is another "failure" that the vaccine gets blamed for.
4. It was my understanding that Thimerisal (the mercury-containing preservative) was going away because of public hysteria (not because of data). I cannot say for sure if it did (the above poster felt that 1/3 of shots still contained it). We all have to make our own decisions about exposures. I can say that if you've ever eaten a fish, you probably got more mercury from that exposure than the flu shot. What taking Thimerisal out of vaccines did accomplish was to require them to be packaged in single-dose vials, which resulted in a huge cost increase to an industry that is already basically performing this service to the public gratis.

As in all things medical, you need to make your own decisions for your own health and body after speaking to your own physician and getting your questions answered to your satisfaction. Please just don't make your decision based on faulty information.

[/On Soapbox]

thank you for this post.

 

[gwsmallwood]

I'll probably get one soon. The first one I got was in 2010. I had never had the flu before, but got one because I had a newborn daughter. Since then I have been getting either the flu, or gastroenteritis (flu-like symptoms, but might not be flu) at least once a year. I think I jinxed myself and I need to get one every year now. Plus, I volunteer in Child Care at church, so I feel like it's the responsible thing to do now.

 

[OneShaveAttaTime]

It seems like half the people I see that get the flu shot get flu like symptoms right after getting it... Therefore, Im out! Why do I feel like there is a level of Karma coming along with me writing this message.. *cough cough*

 

[jamesspo]

It seems like half the people I see that get the flu shot get flu like symptoms right after getting it... Therefore, Im out! Why do I feel like there is a level of Karma coming along with me writing this message.. *cough cough*

See my post above, #47. It's normal, and expected.

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/misconceptions.htm

 

[Shantytownbrown]

just got mine!

 

[Prof. Moriarty]

Just got my free shot thanks to the NHS.

 

[DatabaseMonk]

Got it yesterday. Have a sore arm today, oh well, been getting them for years, and not getting the flu. So, I continue

 

[poikkeus]

Got mine two days ago.

If I can help it, I'm not going to go through the weeks (or months) of suffering through a flu.

 

[August West]

Going this week to get mine at the VA. It seems to work well for me.

Does anyone else pick up AM radio signals through their teeth fillings after the shot?

 

[Redzone]

I am not against it but I do think it should be optional. Personally I don't get one and cannot remember when I last had the flu.

 

[WPD123]

​no

 

[Prof. Moriarty]

​no

yes