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Flu shots


bikeman564™

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Do you get them? I'm 44 and have never gotten one. I had the flu once in my life aboot 22 years ago. My doc asks me, and I say no. Well I'll be there Thursday because of my eternal cough and probably will be asked again. Even though I don't have the flu. Is it worth getting one, or should I keep declining? I don't really want one.

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I love vaccines, so I love the flu vaccine.

The vaccine teaches your body to fight the flu, usually 5 strains a shot. Over the years, you build a 'library' of skills that sometimes helps fight a strain that the CDC misses.

You also add to herd immunity.

And if something goes wrong, and your immune system takes a hit, you will not be as vulnerable to the flu. When you're already sick, getting sicker is not what you want to call fun.

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I think they are important.  The flu kills more people than the shot ever hurt.  It makes sense.  I believe in science.  That being said, many out here do not.  We have a measles epidemic happening because of parents refusing the vaccine.  So diseases that we have gotten under control is now out of control again.  JFC.

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53 minutes ago, bikeman564™ said:

Do you get them? I'm 44 and have never gotten one. I had the flu once in my life aboot 22 years ago. My doc asks me, and I say no. Well I'll be there Thursday because of my eternal cough and probably will be asked again. Even though I don't have the flu. Is it worth getting one, or should I keep declining? I don't really want one.

I got one in 2006 or so when the office had a nurse come round and give FREE flu shots to all willing participants. I think it was a lot of worry about it being a "bad flu season", and I had never had one, so I said WTF and got it.  Don't remember getting particularly sick nor being particularly healthy that winter, so never did it again.

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24 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

Used to get them in the Army but haven’t since.  I get a nasty flu every 5 or so years, knocks me down for a few days and I’m good.  

As I get older and if diabetes ads complications I will.

Surprising they do not recommend one with your diabetes.  Maybe your new doctor will recommend it.

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30 minutes ago, Kzoo said:

The flu has to add complications to your diabetes.

 

Yeah I suppose if you can’t keep anything down it could wack out your meds or insulin. It also weakens your immune system. I notice I get sick more often now and it hits me harder/longer than before.  But they are generally little bugs that don’t keep me from work.

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7 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

Yeah I suppose if you can’t keep anything down it could wack out your meds or insulin. It also weakens your immune system. I notice I get sick more often now and it hits me harder/longer than before.  But they are generally little bugs that don’t keep me from work.

And any infection in your body has to spike you BS number.

 

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Normally, the first thing my endocrinologist asks is if I am up to date on vaccinations and eye exams.  

Also, being sick for a week or so and missing work is one thing, but needing to care for livestock is a different story all together, particularly if we both get sick at the same time.  I can remember in years past that I got really sick and recovered, and then my wife got sick.  I knew what she was going through and kept close tabs on her until she was better.  She decided she would have probably died, if I'd not been there to keep her going.

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I stopped getting flu shots after our kids grew up and stopped bringing a petri dish of diseases home from school. And I haven't had the flu in years. But, when we went to one of those indoor trampoline places for our granddaughter's birthday a few months back, I caught the worst case of flu afterwards. Dang bunch of little runny nosed...…….?

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1 minute ago, team scooter said:

I stopped getting flu shots after our kids grew up and stopped bringing a petri dish of diseases home from school. And I haven't had the flu in years. But, when we went to one of those indoor trampoline places for our granddaughter's birthday a few months back, I caught the worst case of flu afterwards. Dang bunch of little runny nosed...…….?

It could have been worse - PINK EYE!

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9 minutes ago, team scooter said:

I stopped getting flu shots after our kids grew up and stopped bringing a petri dish of diseases home from school. And I haven't had the flu in years. But, when we went to one of those indoor trampoline places for our granddaughter's birthday a few months back, I caught the worst case of flu afterwards. Dang bunch of little runny nosed...…….?

2 words.... McDonalds Playlands

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First, before I go into why to get the flu shot, let me say that most people who "die" of the flu actually die of bacterial pneumonia they catch after being weakened by the flu.  So make sure you get the pneumonia shot - you only need it once of twice over 5 years to protect you for life from 100% of the bacteria known to cause bacterial pneumonia.

The flu only protects you, in any avg. year, from about 60% of the strains of flu going around. The CDC has to guess ahead of time each year which 3 strains of flu are most likely to be the major ones so the pharma companies have enough time to make the vaccine. Some years they make better guesses than others. Of course, if you get it every year, the protection from prior years' strains remains and increases your overall resistance percentage.  Still, getting the shot - especially since it costs me no extra copay - and making me much less likely to catch the flu is worth it to me.

You can NOT catch the flu from the shot. The shot contains the flu virus's protein sheath (cell wall) but the DNA has been removed so it's dead. You may feel flu symptoms and a sore shoulder for a brief period after the shot as your body's immune system reacts to the three flu virus' dead protein sheaths and creates antibodies that attack such-shaped-sheaths, a little fever perhaps, etc.

The more people you're in contact with, the more likely you are to catch an illness, so the flu shot is a major plus if you're in contact with a lot of people.

I taught in a 3-school complex (2 middle and 1 high schools) with no open windows, an enclosed air circulation system, and over 4200 students, many of who were sent to school sick because there are major penalties for too many absences.  It was stupid not to get the flu shot each year. I was stupid the first two years I was a teacher and caught the flu each year. I've had the flu shot every year since - even after retiring.

We had over 140 teachers in the high school alone and those of us who got the flu shots usually retired with 100-250 unused sick days (we got 10 per year) and those who didn't get the flu shots 0-50. That's anecdotal evidence: maybe shot-getting teachers also tend to take better care of themselves in other ways, too.  But I'm sure the flu shot helped boost those numbers to some extent.

I've also have my pneumonia and shingles shots.

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48 minutes ago, MickinMD said:

We had over 140 teachers in the high school alone and those of us who got the flu shots usually retired with 100-250 unused sick days (we got 10 per year) and those who didn't get the flu shots 0-50. That's anecdotal evidence: maybe shot-getting teachers also tend to take better care of themselves in other ways, too.  But I'm sure the flu shot helped boost those numbers to some extent.

You can't easily call in sick with the flu if they know you got the flu shot!  Don't get the shot = more days playing hooky!

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12 minutes ago, bikeman564™ said:

Then I'm not getting :) I flu in 44 years w/o the shot is great odds

Honestly, it started happening for me in my late 40s.  I hope you can continue to beat the odds -- I certainly thought so.  Father time has a way of challenging my beliefs though.  Son of a gun if it doesn't always seem to win too.

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2 hours ago, MickinMD said:

First, before I go into why to get the flu shot, let me say that most people who "die" of the flu actually die of bacterial pneumonia they catch after being weakened by the flu.  So make sure you get the pneumonia shot - you only need it once of twice over 5 years to protect you for life from 100% of the bacteria known to cause bacterial pneumonia.

The flu only protects you, in any avg. year, from about 60% of the strains of flu going around. The CDC has to guess ahead of time each year which 3 strains of flu are most likely to be the major ones so the pharma companies have enough time to make the vaccine. Some years they make better guesses than others. Of course, if you get it every year, the protection from prior years' strains remains and increases your overall resistance percentage.  Still, getting the shot - especially since it costs me no extra copay - and making me much less likely to catch the flu is worth it to me.

You can NOT catch the flu from the shot. The shot contains the flu virus's protein sheath (cell wall) but the DNA has been removed so it's dead. You may feel flu symptoms and a sore shoulder for a brief period after the shot as your body's immune system reacts to the three flu virus' dead protein sheaths and creates antibodies that attack such-shaped-sheaths, a little fever perhaps, etc.

The more people you're in contact with, the more likely you are to catch an illness, so the flu shot is a major plus if you're in contact with a lot of people.

I taught in a 3-school complex (2 middle and 1 high schools) with no open windows, an enclosed air circulation system, and over 4200 students, many of who were sent to school sick because there are major penalties for too many absences.  It was stupid not to get the flu shot each year. I was stupid the first two years I was a teacher and caught the flu each year. I've had the flu shot every year since - even after retiring.

We had over 140 teachers in the high school alone and those of us who got the flu shots usually retired with 100-250 unused sick days (we got 10 per year) and those who didn't get the flu shots 0-50. That's anecdotal evidence: maybe shot-getting teachers also tend to take better care of themselves in other ways, too.  But I'm sure the flu shot helped boost those numbers to some extent.

I've also have my pneumonia and shingles shots.

We better listen to Mickin he has an MD after his name. 

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