Have you received the flu shot, and if not, why not? I'm concerned because I live in an area that is one of the regions hit hard by the flu virus. Also, given the nature of our careers, we are at higher risk for getting the flu. Unfortunately, many times I end up teaching children who are sick or have a family member home with the flu.

My pediatrician says there are certain vax for what he calls economic diseases. Chicken Pox and the flu namely. If you can afford to miss work or have a child out of school then they are not going to cause economic hardship, so it's a vax of convenience.

If there is little or no health insurance, you don't get paid, etc, get the shots.

I am lucky though - if I am sick, I still get paid.

Depends on your body. Someone takes the flu shot just fine without much side effects.

But the flu shot gave me *all* the flu symptoms that lasted almost 10 days. I wasn't infectious, but the immune system fought it like real thing and it felt like a real thing.

For me it is a dilemma:
*Take the risk, either get lucky and don't get sick at all or get really sick, and the probably together with the whole family.
*Take the shot and get moderately sick.

Of course my personal experience has no scientific value.
You might be the ones that don't get much side effects.

Good luck!

Yes, I got mine two days ago.
We work with children, it is important to protect ourselves, our family and also the children that we work with.

I know I'll eat my words, but I believe in getting sick.

Before I started teaching so much, I almost never was sick. Then, I believed in my good immune system - which terribly failed. I ended up catching the flu from my students (mostly 15- to 20-year-olds who go to school sick, because they don't want to miss lessons) several time during the flu season.
Now, I usually have a flu shot in late November and it helps so much. This way, I only have to be concerned about not catching colds, which is so much easier.

Flu shot...most people don't get adverse reactions, unless you are allergic to eggs.

As a health care person, this is one of the worst seasons I have ever seen.

WASH YOUR HANDs, and don't touch your face!

I've been getting the flu shot for years. Never had a reaction, and have avoided the flu as well.

I'm not only protecting myself, but everybody I might have spread the flu to if I'd caught it and passed it on.

This year it was a bit different. The needle is much thinner, I didn't feel the usual stick. It did hurt a bit more the next day though.

I get the flu shot every year. I'm in a service industry that puts me in front of lots of people. So is my wife. The flu is very debilitating in so many ways.

I have only had the flu once during that time period, and I wouldn't have known that the "cold" I had actually was the flu absent a test. The symptoms were really weakened. Once I knew I had the flu I added an antiviral to the mix and it went away quickly. At this point, I would never NOT get the shot. Love that double negative.

Yes, and some of those people might be a whole lot more vulnerable to its effects than you. I think many people forget this aspect of it.

And less people forget what can happen...

The 1918 flu pandemic (January 1918 – December 1920)[1] was an unusually deadly influenza pandemic which infected 500 million[2] people across the world, including remote Pacific islands and the arctic, and killed 20 to 50 million of them—1 to 3 percent of the world's population[

It should be a no-brainer, get the shot (assuming no egg allergy, as previously mentioned and no concurrent moderate/severe illness).
There is no guarantee you won't still get the flu, but it lessens the risk of both acquiring and severity thereof.

I personally favor the injection as it is a "dead" virus (layman's terminology) whereas the nasal formulation is a live virus.
You CANNOT get influenza from the injection, HOWEVER...it is possible (yes, this happens!) you were already exposed to either influenza peri-shot time or another similar virus and, hence, the birth of " I got the flu from the flu vaccine " mania.

I don't know SQUAT about teaching piano, but "this" is what I do in order to make enough money to PAY for a piano teacher (not to mention food and shelter, the other necessities of life)

As an aside, it's not too late to get it now and remember, for next year: Oct/Nov is ideal.

I always shoot for November. I have done it in December on occasion, when inertia and other procrastination has gripped me.

Flu shot for me every year, as soon as it becomes available.

I work with kids. Lots of kids who drool, spit, bite, cough, sneeze, mouth objects and furniture...you get the idea and if you worked there, you'd get a flu shot too!

I got a flu shot last week, hoping it wasn't too late. Didn't hurt till the next day and then my arm was VERY SORE, all the way down to the fingers. Out here in CA we haven't had the big outbreak yet but it's coming. Here's to good health, everyone!

ezpiano, I have been asking all my students and parents if they got the flu shot or plan to get it, and almost all said no. If I get the flu shot, it may protect me, but there is only a 62% chance that it prevent the flu, given all the varying strains out there. I am extremely sensitive to medications and suffered debilitating vertigo for a year from taking a particular med one year.

Washing my hands and keeping them away from my face is extremely important, as you said. I sanitize the piano, keep sanitizer and tissues at the piano, but somehow the little ones manage to forget and use fingers instead of tissues, sneeze, cough. I am sitting inches from them, and by the end of a long day, I feel like I should have worn a hazmat suit.

I've never had a flu shot. During the winter I stock up on Bio-Immunozyme Forte by Biotics and I haven't even had a cold this season. I work with toddlers as well as older kids so I'm extra careful about spreading germs, handwashing, antibacterial wipes, etc...

Here's an article that may be of interest.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/11/06/flu-vaccine-efficacy.aspx

This is pointing out that there are risks in taking a vaccine. And you'll notice that when you go for a flu shot, you will be required to sign a form that states you have been informed that there is a small risk of serious side effects or even death.

I would not agree that the decision is a "no brainer". I think careful consideration is in order.

I've never had a flu shot. I've gotten the flu only once that I remember in my adult life. So for me, I don't worry about it. Other things are more important: eating a balanced, high quality supper at the same time every evening makes a big difference. I notice a lot of people eat very poorly, so I'm not surprised they get sick a lot. They also rush around too much.

Send me a pm if you want details on nutrition and lifestyle improvement.

If handwashing was "THE" prevention, how do you explain the people who wash their hands regularly getting sick? I've never understood that.

That article is from a highly biased antivaccination, antiscience, anti-modern medicine organization. It is in the business of selling supplements (and has been warned repeatedly by the FDA for making false claims).

It is true that there are some risks to any medical procedure. Immunization is one where the benefits seem to outweigh the risks by a huge margin.

It is also true that if everybody else gets immunized, you will benefit without having to share in the risks. Seems a bit on the selfish side to me, but that one's up to your conscience. .

Mmm... and 'modern' medicine, pro-vaccination articles/stats aren't biased either....

The more informed we can become the better. I don't believe everything that the CDC and AMA puts out.

Wow, that's not a good thing to write.

I prefer to boost my immune system with healthy diet and sanitary habits. A little bit of common sense goes a long way.

It's rather funny that, in years past, whenever I got the flu shot, I got the flu regardless.

Every year, chasingrainbows. Thanks for raising the subject, and I wish you the best of health this year.

I've had the flu. Didn't like it. The shot helps keep it away, or lessen its intensity if you do get it.

It is actually a more dangerous disease than many realize--- even in an ordinary year, there are thousands of deaths. In a pandemic year with a hemorrhagic flu similar to 1914-18, hospitals would be overwhelmed and it would be impossible even to provide respirators to all who required them.

It's really so much better to do everything you can not to get it, not to spread it, and to lessen its impact if you do contract it.

http://www.cdc.gov/features/fluactivity/

"...Influenza is a serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and sometimes even death. Every flu season is different, and influenza infection can affect people differently. CDC estimates that from the 1976-1977 flu season to the 2006-2007 season, flu-associated deaths each season ranged from a low of about 3,000 people to a high of about 49,000 people..."

As I was leaving the pharmacy a few days ago, a young lady was just entering the door of the hospital, coughing like a fire engine. She didn't so much as bother to cover her mouth (that was a pretty picture), let alone using a handkerchief. Get a clue, people!

http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/influenza.htm

"...In particular around 450,000 civilian deaths were incurred in the prosperous United States, the majority among otherwise healthy people under the age of 40. In Britain some 228,000 civilian casualties died; 400,000 in Germany. Hardest hit however was India with a reported 16 million casualties alone..."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flu

"...Typically, influenza is transmitted through the air by coughs or sneezes, creating aerosols containing the virus. Influenza can also be transmitted by direct contact with bird droppings or nasal secretions, or through contact with contaminated surfaces. Airborne aerosols have been thought to cause most infections, although which means of transmission is most important is not absolutely clear.[8] Influenza viruses can be inactivated by sunlight, disinfectants and detergents.[9][10] As the virus can be inactivated by soap, frequent hand washing reduces the risk of infection.[11]

"Influenza spreads around the world in seasonal epidemics, resulting in about three to five million yearly cases of severe illness and about 250,000 to 500,000 yearly deaths,[12] rising to millions in some pandemic years. In the 20th century three influenza pandemics occurred, each caused by the appearance of a new strain of the virus in humans, and killed tens of millions of people..."

"...The most famous and lethal outbreak was the 1918 flu pandemic... which lasted from 1918 to 1919. It is not known exactly how many it killed, but estimates range from 50 to 100 million people. This pandemic has been described as "the greatest medical holocaust in history" and may have killed as many people as the Black Death..."

This has been quite effective for me. Only had flu once in 50 years.


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Check out "Why don't we do it in our sleeves?" to see state of the art cough and sneeze catching.

http://www.coughsafe.com/watch-videos.html

Superstition vs science.

The choice is yours.

I've made mine.

Ann, thanks for bringing a little levity to a serious topic. My grandmom lived a ripe old age on a shot of brandy each evening and homemade chicken soup.

I am digesting all of the facts/opinions here, and am still afraid. I did have one horrible year when I started teaching in school, where I was sick every other month, and ended the year with a two week bout of H1N1. After that, I've seemed to build up an immunity. HOwever, the fear of getting that sick again is always in the back of my mind. Coincidentally, the boost in my immune system also happened when I started acupuncture treatments. Been getting them twice a month ever since the dreaded H1N1.

Matter of fact, Ann, CDC says that alcohol does deactivate the flu virus. But I have a feeling you're not washing your hands with perfectly good whiskey. Anyway, they had whiskey in 1914--- plenty of it, too--- so I don't know why so many people died from flu that year.

Acupuncturist told me that it can be useful for improving immune response, though I was not seeing him for that. Unfortunately, it did not do much for my back pain... but it is not superstition; the science is backing it up. The giant HMO Kaiser actually employs acupuncturists, and they're pretty much straight down the middle with Standard of Care. If it helps you, chasingrainbows, it certainly beats getting sick.

NPR's 'Science Friday' had a whole show on flu today. Speaking of science, the objects from which it was most readily possible to culture flu virus, by swabbing them, was the category Kid's Toys. They did not mention swabbing the keys of teachers' pianos, but...