Fundies and the Flu

[Wolfie]

Like with anything else, fundies vary. Essential oils are the big health thing right now. I know a lot of people, from fundie to anti-fundie who are terrified of vaccinations and totally believe that half an onion left to sit in a room will suck that flu virus right out of the air and save you from getting sick.

Ugh, that onion thing is going around on FB right now. I always respond with the snopes link.

[SunnyAndrsn]

I usually get the flu shot, my work now requires that employees get it or wear a mask at work.

I got the flu anyway :-( First time that I think this has ever happened that I got the shot and ended up with the flu. We get the shot at the end of September when it first comes out. I did NOT go to the doctor because I couldn't get in within 48 hours to get started on Tamiflu. We have a shortage of it in my area anyway, we are very hard hit.

Please, if you have upper respiratory symptoms with a fever, STAY HOME. The only time it makes sense to go to the doctor is within the first 48 hours of symptoms, to get started on Tamiflu. Wear a mask when you do go to the doctor.

We've had a ton of people showing up to the ER, and who have been bitchy about wearing masks. They are showing up with entire families, who ARE sick, but not sick enough to be in the ER. They get pissed off when told there is nothing that can be done, they've been sick too long for Tamiflu to work, and they need to go home and take Tylenol and Ibuprofen for the fever, use OTC cold medications for the rest. Rest, lots of fluids...people seem to NOT GET THIS. Oh yeah STAY HOME!! If you can't control the fever, or are having difficulty breathing THEN come to the doctor.

I haven't left my house since I started showing symptoms. I'm on day 6 now and on the upswing. No fever since Thursday night. I have zero energy though. Honestly, I don't know why this is rocket science that people can't figure out that they need to stay home instead of spreading their nasty germs everywhere. People are stupid.

[Wolfie]

I usually get the flu shot, my work now requires that employees get it or wear a mask at work.

I got the flu anyway :-( First time that I think this has ever happened that I got the shot and ended up with the flu. We get the shot at the end of September when it first comes out. I did NOT go to the doctor because I couldn't get in within 48 hours to get started on Tamiflu. We have a shortage of it in my area anyway, we are very hard hit.

Please, if you have upper respiratory symptoms with a fever, STAY HOME. The only time it makes sense to go to the doctor is within the first 48 hours of symptoms, to get started on Tamiflu. Wear a mask when you do go to the doctor.

We've had a ton of people showing up to the ER, and who have been bitchy about wearing masks. They are showing up with entire families, who ARE sick, but not sick enough to be in the ER. They get pissed off when told there is nothing that can be done, they've been sick too long for Tamiflu to work, and they need to go home and take Tylenol and Ibuprofen for the fever, use OTC cold medications for the rest. Rest, lots of fluids...people seem to NOT GET THIS. Oh yeah STAY HOME!! If you can't control the fever, or are having difficulty breathing THEN come to the doctor.

I haven't left my house since I started showing symptoms. I'm on day 6 now and on the upswing. No fever since Thursday night. I have zero energy though. Honestly, I don't know why this is rocket science that people can't figure out that they need to stay home instead of spreading their nasty germs everywhere. People are stupid.

For some of us it's for a few reasons- I only get 10 sick days a year at work. The other reason is that I live alone, if I need to go get meds or animal feed (I usually have enough human food around to last a month), I have to go out. Life isn't all black and white and we don't all have the luxury of staying home even if we can hardly move. (I also figure that I generally caught something at work, so everybody there is already exposed.)

[Closed Womb]

For some of us it's for a few reasons- I only get 10 sick days a year at work. The other reason is that I live alone, if I need to go get meds or animal feed (I usually have enough human food around to last a month), I have to go out. Life isn't all black and white and we don't all have the luxury of staying home even if we can hardly move. (I also figure that I generally caught something at work, so everybody there is already exposed.)

Also, some companies (such as the one Mr. Womb works for) will not allow 5 or more days of sick leave without a doctor's note (assuming one had more than five sick days.) It's either see a doctor or go to work sick.

Mr. Womb was born with a heart defect, so we need to get flu shots every year. This is the first year I am really glad I got one.

[Anise]

Do you get the flu shot? And has it been diagnosed by a doctor?

But no, not obscenly healthy, I have a few chronic problems actually, but I always get my flu shot because I can't be incapacitated for weeks if I were to get the flu- I have a job, I have animals to take care of, and I have a house and myself to take care of, as I'm single.

No, I've never gotten the flu shot. I'm not at risk for complications usually. The only time I went to the doctor for it was when I had a fever for three weeks.

[Wolfie]

No, I've never gotten the flu shot. I'm not at risk for complications usually. The only time I went to the doctor for it was when I had a fever for three weeks.

Are you not in the US? I'm not at risk for complications, but I've had pneumonia (my chronic conditions aren't things that would affect the flu), and even without being at risk for complications they recommend that everybody get the flu shot, because a chance of a couple of days of feeling a little off is much better than actually getting the flu. (and even this year you get partial protection from the variety that mutated after they chose the strains.)

[Witsec7]

I almost wasn't going to get a flu shot this year, but with all the reports of epidemic going around I'm going out today to get one. I have always gotten flu shots and frankly I'm a little chagrined that I've taken so long this year. I also got a pertussis booster this summer.

Thanks to all!

[HarryPotterFan]

I'm annoyed at myself for not getting the shot earlier (mildly freaked out because I woke up with a sore throat). I have to make an appointment online at my university health center and it takes 3 business days to respond. Urgh, no walk-ins and trying to call to schedule over the phone leads to getting a BEEP BEEP BEEP.

[mockingbird]

This is the first year I have gotten the flu shot in years. I had an allergic reaction to it as a kid but I didn't want to deal with wearing a mask at work for the rest of my life so I got allergy tested again and received it in small doses at the allergist. I'm glad I can get it now, not only to avoid the inconvenience of wearing a mask, but because I also have some chronic problems/risk factors. My family and I were very worried about me catching H1N1 so I just had to be extremely careful about washing my hands and sanitizing things and hope for the best. I didn't end up getting it even though many of my friends and family did have it (luckily my brother and sister were able to get Tamiflu).

I don't think I ever missed a day of college because I was sick, maybe one day. Most professors' attendance policies were very strict and minimal. I do think most of my professors would have been willing to work with you if you had something more serious going on, but because I do have a history of more serious health problems, I didn't want to use up any of my sick days in case that did happen or in case I needed to miss for some other reason like my car breaking down or something like that. If I had a cold, I would just drug myself up with decongestants and then come home and sleep.

[snarkykitty]

I agree that a lot of people say they have the flu when it's really a bad cold or a stomach bug. I can only count three times in my 37 years where I know it was the flu. Two of the three times I did get over it without seeing a doctor- but I was very lucky, and I was exhausted for months afterwards, the third time I developed walking pneumonia, so I did end up at the doctors. (I was very lucky last time I had the flu, as it was H1N1 that hit early and a lot of my students ended up hospitalized.)

However, I am a huge proponent of flu shots, and people who just knock them and say that they are ineffective, or worse, that they make you sick really annoy me.

THANK YOU!!! This totally bugs me, too.

I'm not sure about anyone else, but when I have had the flu, the symptoms were unmistakeable. Aside from my CF-related lung infections/pneumonia, I have only had the Flu virus maybe a handful of times in my life. My husband and I both contracted H1N1 (confirmed via a culture) and we were completely laid out for two entire weeks. Because it started on Thanksgiving, my doctor's office was closed and I didn't get Tamiflu in time (which is supposed to lessen the severity and length of flu symptoms). The fevers, the aches and the fatigue was almost unbearable. The funny thing is, I had received the H1N1 vaccine, but it takes 14 days to fully take effect. My symptoms began exactly 13 days after the vaccination (which meant I had contracted it within the previous week, and I *know* the perpetrator - he's a repeat offender lol).

Something else that bugs me is when people say they have "the stomach flu". There is NO such thing. Although you can have GI symptoms during an Influenza infection, "the flu" is a respiratory virus. The puking, diarrhea and nausea that people call the "stomach flu" is often a virus contracted via touching surfaces of infected people, not washing your hands, and then touching your face/mouth/nose. This is why little kids often get stomach bugs. *shudder*

Beyond that, this flu season is rough, even with the flu shot we have all been sick multiple times, as have all our friends, and it's been nasty. Christmas and new years, we we're just sick and sick and sick, it was ridiculous. I was sick for almost a month straight this season, it sucked. And I got the flu shot, for all the good it did me lol.

The flu shot will NOT prevent other colds or bacterial or viral infections. It will only help with a few particular strains. If you keep getting sick, you might ask your doctor to perform a sputum culture (stuff you cough up from your lungs) and send it off to see what is growing. If it's bacterial, they can figure out if an antibiotic is appropriate, and which one(s) are the best for you at the moment. If it's viral and you keep getting reinfected, you might have to do some heavy-duty sanitizing.

And yes, I get the flu vaccine every year, and have since I was a baby. Any cold or virus can set off the colonized infections/pneumonia in my lungs and land me in the hospital on IV antibiotics. There are a lot of people who can't take chances getting sick, and these martyrs who brag about being sick and take no precautions just make things all the more dangerous for compromised populations. I've got my supply of surgical-grade face masks and have put myself on a no-contact diet. No hugs, kisses or shaking hands. Sorry, after this past 3-week hospitalization, I need all the protection I can get!

[Evilbad]

I never said it will prevent me from getting sick, but it sure as hell didn't help me either. Everybody this season is sick, shot or not.

It's supposed to be a particularly bad season for colds and flu this year, either way. And at least in this area, it's quite true. It's knocking everybody on thier behinds, and then after the respiratory part and sore throat, a stomach bug has been hitting everybody. It's quite sudden and rather violent. I felt fine one day at work, all of the sudden I was running down the hall, it was awful. I had to call dh to pick me up, and I couldn't keep anything down for like three days. And then I was fine. Wtf.

[Wolfie]

I never said it will prevent me from getting sick, but it sure as hell didn't help me either. Everybody this season is sick, shot or not.

Between various reports that I've read and heard on the TV, one of the strains going around is covered by the shot, the other mutated, but you still get 60-70% coverage on it. Here is the CDC report http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtm ... 2e0111a1_w

And around where I live there have been some colds going around, but the flu isn't bad yet. And I hope it doesn't hit bad here, because if it does, it will be very sad since my county has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the state- other diseases like whooping cough have occasional outbreaks. It's very sad.

[mockingbird]

And around where I live there have been some colds going around, but the flu isn't bad yet. And I hope it doesn't hit bad here, because if it does, it will be very sad since my county has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the state- other diseases like whooping cough have occasional outbreaks. It's very sad.

Ugh, same here. The residents at the children's hospital said they are seeing whooping cough at least once or twice a week. :(

I actually wasn't allowed to get live vaccines as a child because of immune issues. I was finally able to get MMR before I left for college. When I found out about the whooping cough outbreaks here I was SO glad I am able to get live vaccines now and got caught up on all the others I missed. (Whooping cough is not a live vaccine but they said they have seen measles too. Great!!)

[Austin]

At 30, I have had the real flu twice in my life, once as a kid (around 12ish) and once as an adult. As a kid, I remember I slept on the couch so my mom could keep better track of me. I remember one of the days I was sick, I fell asleep around 7pm. I remember my mom waking me up even though I was ridiculously tired and miserable and looking at the clock that said 6:30, I feverishly yelled at her for waking up so early when I was so sick. She told me it was 6:30 at night and that if I didn't at least drink some water she was going to take me to the emergency room. When I had it as an adult I was actively symptomatic sick for at least a week, and thorough exhausted and barely able to function for two weeks after that.

I've also, honestly only had the flu shot 3 times in my life, and every time I've gotten sick afterwards. Not flu sick, but achey and dizzy with a low grade fever and it lasts for at least two days. I don't know why it happens, but I do know that it does. I've never had a problem with any other vaccine. The last two years I've sucked it up and gotten the shot, since I don't want to have the actual flu or pass it to anyone else, but the side effects do suck (not anywhere nearly as much as the flu though)

It's my understanding this happens as a result of your body's immune system revving up as it recognizes the "intruders". The flu virus is dead so you can't get the actual flu from it, but your immune system can still react. Kind of sucks, I realize, but I'm glad you're getting the vaccine anyway.

[Terrie]

I've had real flu four times before I was 20. I'm apparently prone to getting it. (And, yes, this is diagnosed by a doctor flu). Since I started getting the flu shot -- nothing. I love flu shots. I'll take a nasty cold over the flu any day.

[theologygeek]

One of my pet peeves is when people say they have the flu and they don't. Every time I or one of my kids have gotten the flu, it was five days of high fever, five days of a killer headache, and feeling like a truck ran us over. After the week is over, the cough comes and that never ends. Every time my mother has a cold she says she has the flu. My kids have gotten flu shots. The couple of times I slacked off were when they got the flu.

[Arete]

I had the flu once. That was enough enough to make me a flu shot evangelist. It was confirmed by my doctor. The thing I remember most is the pain. Not the aches and pains of a viral cold. This was like what it must feel to have the snot beat out of you. It would start as general aches in the morning and progress to the beatdown by nightfall which also coincided with the fever spikes. I was useless for 2 weeks, and it took almost 6 weeks to recover completely. My practically coughed up a lung and the fatigue was terrible. I have certainly gotten other respiratory infections through the years, but never that nightmare since I started getting yearly shots. While the shot is only the "best guess" for the year, it's usually pretty accurate and I'll take 70% coverage to 0 any day of the week.

[Arete]

I had the flu once. That was enough enough to make me a flu shot evangelist. It was confirmed by my doctor. The thing I remember most is the pain. Not the aches and pains of a viral cold. This was like what it must feel to have the snot beat out of you. It would start as general aches in the morning and progress to the beatdown by nightfall which also coincided with the fever spikes. I was useless for 2 weeks, and it took almost 6 weeks to recover completely. I practically coughed up a lung and the fatigue was terrible. I have certainly gotten other respiratory infections through the years, but never that nightmare since I started getting yearly shots. While the shot is only the "best guess" for the year, it's usually pretty accurate and I'll take 70% coverage to 0 any day of the week.

[Turtle]

People claiming they "have the flu" or "have a stomach flu" when they haven't been diagnosed/actually have a flu-like virus or stomach bug is such a huge pet peeve of mine. I have no idea why it bothers me so much.

I've had the actual flu once, and I felt like I'd been hit by a bus. My whole body was in pain. After that, I make sure to get a flu shot every year. We gets the seasonal cold viruses, and while they suck, they are not near as bad as the flu.

[theCR]

I had never gotten the flu shot till i was pregnant 3 years ago I got the flu shot and got a different strain of flu while pregnant... I will never get the shot again and I have yet to get the flu as well

[Conuly]

I had never gotten the flu shot till i was pregnant 3 years ago I got the flu shot and got a different strain of flu while pregnant... I will never get the shot again and I have yet to get the flu as well

Do you think the flu shot gave you that different strain of flu?

[theCR]

Do you think the flu shot gave you that different strain of flu?

lol no but Im not risking it again.

[Sumeri]

I got influenza A last year (after getting the shot) and was absolutely miserable. Honestly, I "lost" three days somewhere, I was so out of it. I've had the flu a handful of times, once it turned into pneumonia and I was hospitalized for a week. A SOLID week. When I got to the ER my pulse was 26. I have never been so ill in my life.

Last year I felt fine and then one afternoon at work I couldn't hold on to a pen, my fingers were so achy. By the next morning I couldn't walk downstairs without clutching the bannister. It was as though I had aged five decades overnight.

[Terrie]

The last time I had the flu, I was lucky. It was mild, only about 4 days. But it was two weeks before I could walk up a single flight of stairs without stopping to catch my breath. I remember having it in junior high, a temp of 103F, and being so weak and achy that I needed help to get up and go to the bathroom. From my bed to the toilet was less than 10 ft. (My bed was right next to my bedroom door, which was right next to the bathroom door).

[desertvixen]

I hate getting the flu shot (or rather the FluMist dealie) but that's just because it only takes me about 6 hours to get to the feeling like crap stage. I know it means it's working, but it still sucks.

However, Uncle Sam thoughtfully ensures I get it every year, and I'd rather have that then actual flu. I actually prefer the mist because the Army sticks me with enough needles.

I agree it's no shock that a lot of the people we discuss probably don't have good immune systems, what with diet and other conditions.