OT-Influenza

[inkman]

So how many times have you had the flu? I think I can only say for certain twice in 42 years. Didn't seem like enough to warrant getting shots. The whole process bothers me for reasons I can't explain.

[wjag]

1 time that I can remember in 5+ decades. I do get the flu shot every year. It's free. I see no reason to risk getting the flu. I have kids in a disease infested institution (also known as school). While the flu shot isn't a certainty to prevent the flu, it sure seems like a resonable safeguard. The one time I did get it was enough to convince me I didn't want to go through it again.

[Weave]

2, maybe 3 times. Last one was almost 15 years ago. But it was a dandy. I remember lying in bed thinking that I "got" how people die from it. It was a pretty rough flu.

 

Some years I get a flu shot. Didn't this year. More out of laziness than anything.

[josie]

Flu flu, only a couple times. Stomach flus... pretty much 3 times a year growing up. At least.

 

Never have gotten a flu shot- nearly everyone in my family has terrible reactions to it and I guess I just don't want to find out if I also will lose a couple days to... the flu... because of the flu shot. Guess I'd rather take the risk.

[darksabre]

I think I had it two years ago. Other than that, never.

 

Never had a flu shot.

[biodork]

I've only had (what I think was probably) the flu once, and that was right at the beginning of the spring semester of my junior year of college. I was sick for a solid 2 weeks and even lost my voice for part of it, but I wasn't bedridden so it's possible I just picked up a wicked bacterial respiratory infection. I've resisted the flu shot for years because I find it unnecessary for most people in my age group, but I relented last year since my boss has patient contact and young children who are always sick. The flu shot kicked my ass this year, though (felt like crap the whole day after getting it), making me long for the years I relied on herd immunity.

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Had it bad this time last year. The sickest I've been since a little kid. Other than that, not bad enough to remember.

 

As far as the flu shot debate....I would NEVER get it. I know some people I trust who say it is worth it, but I have also seen first hand the effects on the elderly. While the claim is that it is a dead shot and can't get you sick, those who already have other issues and get the shot reach a critical mass in having to defend themselves. I have seen someone close to me go septic a few days after getting the shot. Countless others die of "the flu" weeks after getting the shot.

 

If you are strong, you can kick it no matter what. If you are weak, the chances of getting the proper defense versus being sent over the edge in current medical condition is a big question mark to me and a no-no. I understand how flu can eventually send elderly into pneumonia and be a threat.....but I'd rather let nature dictate the terms over man trying to top nature unless I am confident that it makes sense. I am far from confident.

[JJFIVEOH]

Define 'flu'. It used to mean puking your guts out for days straight, not being able to keep any food down, and drinking like there's no tomorrow to prevent dehydration. Today, people say they have the flu when their nose is stuffed. At least around here they do.

[darksabre]

Define 'flu'. It used to mean puking your guts out for days straight, not being able to keep any food down, and drinking like there's no tomorrow to prevent dehydration. Today, people say they have the flu when their nose is stuffed. At least around here they do.

 

Crippling sickness would be my definition.

 

Had it bad this time last year. The sickest I've been since a little kid. Other than that, not bad enough to remember.

 

As far as the flu shot debate....I would NEVER get it. I know some people I trust who say it is worth it, but I have also seen first hand the effects on the elderly. While the claim is that it is a dead shot and can't get you sick, those who already have other issues and get the shot reach a critical mass in having to defend themselves. I have seen someone close to me go septic a few days after getting the shot. Countless others die of "the flu" weeks after getting the shot.

 

If you are strong, you can kick it no matter what. If you are weak, the chances of getting the proper defense versus being sent over the edge in current medical condition is a big question mark to me and a no-no. I understand how flu can eventually send elderly into pneumonia and be a threat.....but I'd rather let nature dictate the terms over man trying to top nature unless I am confident that it makes sense. I am far from confident.

 

I watched doctors kill my grandmother with their medicine. I'm watching my grandfather fall apart thanks to chiropractors performing their trade on him and causing more damage than good. I watch my aunt, who I'm convinced is a hemophiliac, constantly get "treated" for whatever current ailment she's got.

 

Gyno's are the only doctors you can trust.

[biodork]

Define 'flu'. It used to mean puking your guts out for days straight, not being able to keep any food down, and drinking like there's no tomorrow to prevent dehydration. Today, people say they have the flu when their nose is stuffed. At least around here they do.

 

People definitely misuse the term, but the OP was careful to put influenza in the thread title. Too often what is referred to as the "stomach flu" is actually norovirus or something else, which is nothing like the real flu:

 

http://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/flu-guide/stomach-flu-not-influenza

[Wyldnwoody44]

 

 

Crippling sickness would be my definition.

 

 

 

I watched doctors kill my grandmother with their medicine. I'm watching my grandfather fall apart thanks to chiropractors performing their trade on him and causing more damage than good. I watch my aunt, who I'm convinced is a hemophiliac, constantly get "treated" for whatever current ailment she's got.

 

Gyno's are the only doctors you can trust.

 

On the contrary, I know many ob/gyn docs that I would not trust... coincidentally that field has the highest malpractice costs of all doctors.

 

As for the influenza shot, the makers have to guess what 3-5 strains of the flu will be in a pandemic about 8 months ahead of time, there are several hundred strains but in order for companies to produce the amount needed, they have to rely on patterns and certain medical analytics and take a best guess, the odds are not that great.... As for the virus itself... It is attenuated, which is the equivalent of being beat within inches of your life... While not usually harmful, it can cause serious issues, especially in those with any immune system compromise... I don't like the recommendations that the AMA has regarding the injecting of the vaccine.... It's recommended in elderly and those with chronic conditions... Us in the medical field are required to get them yearly as well at most places

 

Unfortunately for me, I say I get the flu at least once every 5 years, but that's the risk you have when working in hospitals around sick people all day

 

 

[SwampD]

I have had the flu twice. Both times it sucked. The first was just the "Can't get out of bed for four days" variety. That I can take. The other was three days of the Flyin' Hawaiin and not being able to eat for a week. Even after that, though, I still never got a shot.

 

I can't remember who it was, but I had a pretty good dust up with someone in the complaint thread about the flu shot last year. I think he has something to do with them. I'm afraid to go back and look at what I wrote because for the first time ever I broke down and got a shot this year. It really wasn't a big deal and even if it only gives me 5% less chance of getting it, why not.

 

And I figure, whatever chip They are putting in me when They give me the shot to keep tabs on me is really unnecessary. My kid can already legally buy 2OZ of weed a month. They know where to find me.

[Randall Flagg]

I've never had the flu, nor the flu shot. However, I am only eighteen, and am on a college campus 24/7 :P So at some point, I suspect it will come.

 

 

Edit: That : P face looks far happier than I planned it to

[skaught]

I've never had the flu as far as I know and I got a shot once, but I've had plenty of other things: appendicitis, pneumonia, pertussis (whooping cough).

[Huckleberry]

Haven't been sick in over 20yrs, And i know of people getting flu shots actually getting sick by them.

[Weave]

Define 'flu'. It used to mean puking your guts out for days straight, not being able to keep any food down, and drinking like there's no tomorrow to prevent dehydration. Today, people say they have the flu when their nose is stuffed. At least around here they do.

 

Puking your guts out is not the flu. Most cases of puking your guts out for a few days is related to food borne illness. Influenza, the upper respiratory viral infection is the flu.

 

And yes, tons of folks with bad colds claim to have the flu. Getting actual influenza is a rather memorable event for most folks.

[That Aud Smell]

thanks for that, weave.

 

i blame the NHL for reinforcing the misconception that GI bugs *and* various forms of food poisoning (for which there are no immunizations, yet) are a form of influenza (for which there is an immunization).

 

as i said in the nolan thread: GI viruses and food borne illnesses didn't cause a brutally fatal pandemic at the end of WWI: influenza did.

 

[Marvelo]

The flu could be deadly but I don't see it. Generally you let it run its course and it's over for any normal person. I don't understand how the Walgreens and supermarkets and banks and everyone else who's pushing the shots so hard could do so. It feels very wrong when I'm in a drug store and someone they hire as a greeter directs me to the back to get my shot. My dad got a flu shot a few years back and it caused an infection in his eye that was just about to get operated on.

 

The flu shot hysteria feels very suspicious and I have a similar feeling about the TSA, another agency that's set up not to benefit us but to control us.

[That Aud Smell]

The flu could be deadly but I don't see it. Generally you let it run its course and it's over for any normal person. I don't understand how the Walgreens and supermarkets and banks and everyone else who's pushing the shots so hard could do so. It feels very wrong when I'm in a drug store and someone they hire as a greeter directs me to the back to get my shot. My dad got a flu shot a few years back and it caused an infection in his eye that was just about to get operated on.

 

The flu shot hysteria feels very suspicious and I have a similar feeling about the TSA, another agency that's set up not to benefit us but to control us.

 

the notion that the public policy of encouraging everyone to get their flu shots is part of some nefarious shadow government/megaladon corporation's efforts to control us or push a product of dubious value is ... well, beyond the realm of rational thought -- straight tinfoil hat stuff.

 

poster claude verret appears to be involved in the industry that manufactures the flu vaccines. for my part, an immediate family member of mine (who has an advanced degree in public health) spent time working in atlanta on pandemic prevention policies. the people responsible for developing these policies are smart and selfless scientists who, oh, just don't want a million people to needlessly drop dead from a nasty strain of the flu. the policy of creating as much herd immunity from influenza is a laudable one because science.

 

i will now wait watchfully for the thread's possibly veering into the anti-vaccination bullspit that morons like jenny mccarthy promulgate.

[Claude_Verret]

Whoa..where to begin...

 

You absolutely, positively cannot get the flu from the flu shot. Period. The virus in the flu shot vaccine that is delivered by IM injection is inactivated, killed, non-infectious etc. You can't get influenza from receiving the flu shot.

 

Flu mist, has an attenuated cold-adapted virus in it and is administered intranasally. This form of the vaccine is more immunogenic, meaning it generally provides a better immune response or greater protection against infection. However, since it is attenuated it is only recommended for patients between the ages of 2-50 I believe.

 

The soreness or malaise you might feel after receiving the flu shot is your body generating a immune response to the vaccine, meaning it's working. A very small price to pay versus contracting a full blown case of influenza.

 

Besides the confusion with the "stomach flu", many people think they have had the flu when they more likely only had a rhinovirus (common cold). As others here have mentioned, if you get a full blown clinically diagnosed case of flu and you didn't get the shot that year, I can promise you that you will wish you had as you lie in bed in agony.

 

The strains that they pick to include each year isn't akin to throwing darts at a wall. There are hundreds of National Influenza Centers worldwide that are constantly doing surveillance of what virus strains are circulating in the population. After this data is compiled, the WHO convenes a meeting each year and makes recommendations based on this data.

 

There is more that I could address in regard to pandemics, H5N1, H7N9, increasing antiviral resistance and the public health benefits of getting vaccinated, but there's not much point.

 

However, since some have shared some anecdotal stores I thought that I'd share a few clinical cases that I know about. My wife is a pediatric nurse practitioner and she has had more than a few infant patients die from influenza during her career. None of those that died got the flu shot. That's what you get when people make medical decisions based on advice from such qualified individuals like Jenny McCarthy rather than trained medical experts.

 

edit: Based on Aud's post to provide full disclosure, I do not work for one of the flu vaccine manufacturers. but I do work for one of the many companies that makes an influenza diagnostic test.

[wjag]

the notion that the public policy of encouraging everyone to get their flu shots is part of some nefarious shadow government/megaladon corporation's efforts to control us or push a product of dubious value is ... well, beyond the realm of rational thought -- straight tinfoil hat stuff.

 

poster claude verret appears to be involved in the industry that manufactures the flu vaccines. for my part, an immediate family member of mine (who has an advanced degree in public health) spent time working in atlanta on pandemic prevention policies. the people responsible for developing these policies are smart and selfless scientists who, oh, just don't want a million people to needlessly drop dead from a nasty strain of the flu. the policy of creating as much herd immunity from influenza is a laudable one because science.

 

i will now wait watchfully for the thread's possibly veering into the anti-vaccination bullspit that morons like jenny mccarthy promulgate.

 

I agree.. Get a flu shot you bunch of babies. :w00t: Don't be a vector for the rest of us.

[LGR4GM]

Ahh Jenny McCarthy the same idiot who thinks Vaccines cause autism.

 

The flu shot works with the exceptions being for some elderly patients with weak or impaired immune systems.

[SwampD]

http://forums.sabres...000#entry430870

 

Here's a previous discussion.

 

Ahh, the Jenny McCarthy defense. Yes, we are all basing our decisions on what she says. :wallbash:

 

Can we please stop bringing her up?

[Claude_Verret]

http://forums.sabres...000#entry430870

 

Here's a previous discussion.

 

Ahh, the Jenny McCarthy defense. Yes, we are all basing our decisions on what she says. :wallbash:

 

Can we please stop bringing her up?

 

in my examples, she was the exact reason why many of those parents chose not to have their now dead children vaccinated. That woman has blood on her hands.

[shrader]

in my examples, she was the exact reason why many of those parents chose not to have their now dead children vaccinated. That woman has blood on her hands.

 

We might as well go right to the top of that ladder and mention the doctor with the falsified research.